ON 

NeVFOUND 
RIY6R 


ON    NEWFOUND    RIVER 


ON   NEWFOUND   RIVER 


BY 


THOMAS    NELSON    PAGE 

AUTHOR  OF  "  IN  OLE  VIRGINIA,"    "  Two  LITTLE 
CONFEDERATES,"  ETC. 


NEW  YORK 

CHARLES  SCRIBNER'S   SONS 
1891 


COPYRIGHT,   1891, 
BY  CHARLES   SCRIBNER'S  SONS. 


tty  gear 


ANNE    BRUCE    PAGE 


M11974 


ON   NEWFOUND    RIVER 

A    STORY. 


CHAPTER  I. 

NEWFOUND  RIVER,  or,  as  it  is  called  by  the 
denizens  of  that  section  of  Virginia  through 
which  it  glides,  "  Newfound,"  steals  through 
two  or  three  counties  of  Eastern  Virginia  in 
such  a  leisurely,  unobtrusive  fashion  that  it 
was  not  supposed  by  the  early  settlers  to 
be  different  from  the  numerous  "  branches  " 
which  are  found  between  the  undulations, 
there  considered  hills,  until  it  was  discovered 
that  it  stretched  for  fifty  miles  in  an  almost 
direct  line.  It  thereupon  received  its  baptis 
mal  name,  which  was,  after  a  little  time, 
abbreviated  into  "  Newfound,"  by  which  it 
is,  in  the  phrase  of  the  law,  still  called  and 
known. 

War  and  its  effects  have  wrought  a  sor 
rowful  change  in  the  old  county,  as  in  other 

1 


2  ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

sections  of  the  State.  It  lay  right  in  the 
track  of  the  armies,  and  the  civilization  which 
existed  there  in  the  old  days  before  the  war 
has  perished.  But  at  the  time  when  the  events 
herein  related  occurred,  the  country  on  New 
found  was  one  of  the  typical  "  neighborhoods  " 
of  the  State.  The  Landons  and  others  of  their 
kind  ruled  unquestioned  in  an  untitled  mano 
rial  system;  their  poor  neighbors  stood  in 
a  peculiar  relation  to  them,  part  friend,  part 
retainer,  the  line  between  independence  and 
vassalage  being  impalpable;  and  peace  and 
plenty  reigned  over  a  smiling  land. 

The  value  of  a  plantation  in  those  old 
times  was  largely  determined  by  the  amount 
of  "bottom-land"  on  it,  the  uplands  being 
poor. 

The  finest  "  bottom "  on  Newfound  was 
that  at  Landon  Hall,  which  was,  indeed,  the 
only  one  distinguished  by  the  more  dignified 
name  of  "low  ground."  Year  in  and  year  out 
it  brought  corn  so  "  rank  "  that,  in  the  pictur 
esque  language  of  the  negroes,  "you  just  could 
follow  the  balk,"  by  which  was  meant  that 
one  could  just  detect  or  follow  with  the  eye 
the  spaces  between  the  rows. 

Perhaps  it  was   this  perennial  abundance 


ON  NEWFOUND  1UVER.  6 

of  the  harvest  which  gave  the  Landons  their 
prestige  in  the  county  quite  as  much  as  the 
fact  that  they  held  their  lands  under  the  same 
grant  which  had  been  issued  by  Charles  II. 
to  the  first  of  the  name  who  had  crossed  the 
seas. 

Father  and  son,  for  six  generations  they  had 
held  it,  and  it  was  their  boast  that  in  all  this 
period  they  had  lost  but  one  field. 

This  was  the  tract  of  a  hundred  acres  or 
so  of  arable  land,  and  a  little  more  of  marsh, 
beyond  Newfound,  which  the  fourth  Landon 
had  in  very  exuberance  of  recklessness  lost 
one  night  at  cards  to  a  neighbor.  That  side 
of  Newfound  was  swampy,  at  best,  from  the 
backwater  of  the  mill-pond,  and  the  tract  was 
chiefly  valuable  because  on  it  stood  the  quaint 
old  gray  frame-dwelling  with  its  dormer  win 
dows  and  hipped  roof,  which  the  first  Landon 
had  built  and  named  "  Landon  Hill,"  and  in 
which  they  had  lived  until  they  erected  the 
imposing  mansion  on  the  eminence  on  the 
other  side  of  the  stream,  which  they  called 
"Landon  Hall."  His  friend  had  badgered  him 
to  bet  the  land,  and  he  had  done  so  and  lost. 
He  offered  to  redeem  at  twice  its  value ;  but 
the  proposal  was  rejected.  The  friends  be- 


4  ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

came  bitter  enemies,  and  a  duel  had  in  time 
followed  in  which  Landon  had  shot  his  adver 
sary. 

This  had  not,  however,  remedied  the  mat 
ter. 

It  was  found  that  the  owner  had  the  night 
before,  with  malignant  prevision,  executed  a 
will  leaving  the  land  entailed  as  far  as  pos 
sible,  and  with  conditions  which  effectually 
prevented  it  again  passing  into  the  hands  of 
a  Landon  for  several  generations. 

From  this  time  the  old  place  was  Naboth's 
vineyard  to  the  Landons.  The  house,  peaked 
and  gray  with  age,  stood  on  a  rise  across  the 
low  grounds  and  the  river  immediately  in 
front  of  the  lofty  hill  on  which  rose  the  Lan 
dons'  commanding  mansion.  It  was  so  situ 
ated  that  it  could  not  be  shut  out  of  the 
landscape.  It  was  the  one  place  in  sight 
which  did  not  belong  to  the  Landons,  and  it 
had  been  the  cradle  of  the  race :  of  a  race 
which  prided  itself  on  being  an  older  branch 
than  that  which  remained  in  England,  and 
on  having  brought  its  landholding  instincts 
across  the  water. 

No  wonder  the  Landons  chafed  and  fretted 
over  its  loss. 


ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER.  5 

The  son  of  the  one  who  threw  away  the 
old  home  retrieved  the  impaired  fortunes  of 
the  family  by  marrying  an  heiress,  and  the 
Landons  became  wealthier  than  ever.  Large 
offers  were  made  to  the  owner  of  the  place 
to  repurchase  it ;  but  the  will  of  the  duellist 
effectually  prevented  its  recovery,  and  Colonel 
Landon  compensated  himself  and  his  wife  by 
adding  to  the  estate  on  the  other  side,  and 
rebuilding  Landon  Hall  in  magnificent  style. 
The  limitation  did  not  expire  for  two  genera 
tions,  and  he  left  in  his  will  a  provision  incul 
cating  the  necessity  of  securing  the  lost  tract 
as  soon  as  it  was  possible  to  do  so.  The 
colonel's  son,  who  was  Major  Landon,  on 
coming  into  the  estate  endeavored  faithfully 
to  fulfil  his  father's  behest,  and  watched 
eagerly  for  the  death  of  the  old  woman  with 
whose  life  the  limitations  on  the  lost  land 
expired.  She  lived  in  the  far  south,  and 
the  place  for  several  years  was  unoccupied 
and  neglected,  the  fences  going  down,  the 
old,  quaint,  frame-house  falling  into  disrepair, 
and  the  fields  growing  up  in  sassafras  and 
pine.  As  soon  as  Major  Landon  heard  of  her 
death  he  despatched  an  agent  to  the  south 
to  secure  from  the  heir  the  option  to  pur- 


G  ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

chase ;  but  to  his  mortification  and  chagrin 
he  found  that  the  property  had  the  day  be 
fore  he  applied  for  it  been  sold  to  an  old 
navy  surgeon,  one  Dr.  Browne.  He  immedi 
ately  wrote  and  offered  the  purchaser  a  hand 
some  advance  on  his  price  ;  but  it  was  declined 
on  the  ground  that  the  doctor  had  bought  it 
for  a  home  and  would  not  sell  it  at  any  figure 
whatsoever. 

This  almost  threw  the  major  into  a  fever. 

Shortly  afterwards  the  old  doctor  arrived 
with  his  family,  which  consisted  of  a  little 
granddaughter  and  two  old  negroes,  one  of 
whom  was  his  body-servant,  and  the  other 
the  child's  mammy. 

Major  Landon,  after  the  custom  of  the 
country,  called  formally  on  the  new  neighbor; 
but  he  was  not  received,  and  it  soon  became 
known  that  the  newcomer  was  not  at  home 
to  visitors  and  wished  to  be  let  alone.  This 
was  as  open  a  violation  of  the  custom  on  New 
found  as  if  the  new  settler  had  waylaid  his 
neighbor  from  behind  a  fence,  and  from  that 
time  the  aversion  of  the  major,  and  the  sus 
picion  of  the  rest  of  the  community  fell 
upon  him. 


CHAPTER  II. 

THEY  were  an  austere  people,  the  Landons, 
reaping  where  they  had  not  sown,  and  gather 
ing  where  they  had  not  strewn.  Tall,  straight, 
keen-eyed,  aquiline  they  grew,  father  and 
son,  for  generation  after  generation,  as  dis 
tinct  from  their  plain  neighbors  on  New 
found  as  a  Lombardy  poplar  is  from  the  com 
mon  pine.  The  major  was  the  austerest  of 
the  race.  He  reigned  supreme  on  Newfound. 

It  was  an  accepted  fact  on  Newfound  that 
every  man,  woman,  and  child  gave  way  to 
the  major  except  Bruce.  Bruce  was  his  only 
son,  and  the  prospective  heir  to  the  Landon 
Hall  plantation,  with  its  four  thousand  acres 
and  its  five  hundred  negroes. 

As  Bruce  sprang  up  tall  and  slim,  yet 
straight  and  active,  the  resemblance  between 
him  and  the  major,  "  the  Landon  favor,"  was 
marked.  There  was  in  both  the  same  finely 
cut  face  and  clean  figure,  the  same  deep-set 
clear  gray  eyes  under  strong  brows,  the 

7 


8  O^V  NEWFOUND  ItlVER. 

slightly  aquiline  nose,  the  wide  mouth  full 
of  fine  teeth,  and  the  firm  chin  and  jaw.  The 
same  spirit  discovered  itself  in  each:  an  in 
domitable  resolution  to  carry  out  his  will 
which  showed  itself  in  every  line  of  the  face 
and  every  fibre  of  the  frame.  The  major  was 
stern  and  imperative ;  the  boy  was  resolute 
and  defiant.  One  of  the  servants  expressed  it 
once  by  the  saying,  "  De  chip  don'  fly  fur  from 
de  stump." 

"lie  has  the  Landon  bull-dog  in  him," 
said  the  major,  proudly;  "he  will  not  give 
up  unless  you  kill  him."  Once  when  Bruce 
was  being  thrashed  for  going  fishing  in  dis 
obedience  to  orders,  he  faced  the  major,  and 
looking  him  straight  in  the  eyes  said  dog 
gedly,  "  You'd  better  give  me  two  now ;  for 
I'm  going  again."  To  the  credit  of  the  major, 
it  must  be  said,  that  this  exhibition  of  the 
unconquerable  will  of  the  family  for  that 
time  got  the  boy  off. 

By  the  time  Bruce  was  thirteen  he  was  as 
well  known  on  Newfound  as  his  father.  At 
least  twice  he  had  been  fished  out  of  the  mill- 
pond  unconscious  (once  when  he  was  pulled 
out  by  Dick  Runaway,  and  once  when  he 
had  got  Dick  out),  besides  any  number  of 


ON  NEWFOUND  EIVEE.  9 

times  when  he  had  fallen  in  and  been  got  out 
before  he  reached  that  state. 

Sam  Mills  considered  him  a  prodigy.  He 
always  spoke  of  his  qualities  as  if  he  had  been 
a  young  puppy.  It  was  more  than  rumored 
that  Bruce  had  once  or  twice  met  some  of 
the  runaway  negroes  who  skulked  around  in 
the  woods,  and  had  hunted  with  them.  No 
one  but  Bruce  could  have  stood  this  charge. 
Bruce  did  not  deny  it.  He  simply  claimed 
that  Dick  Runaway,  as  he  was  called,  was  his 
father's  negro,  and  no  one  had  anything  to 
do  with  it. 

There  was  only  one  person  with  whom  the 
boy  was  not  on  good  terms.  A  young  man 
had  come  to  the  neighborhood  a  year  or  two 
before,  drifted  from  no  one  knew  where, 
though  a  strong  accent  and  familiarity  with 
the  purlieus  of  a  great  city  led  to  grave  sus 
picion  of  his  origin,  which  was  subsequently 
verified.  He  was  too  lazy  to  engage  in  reg 
ular  work,  and  lived  generally  by  his  wits. 
His  only  ostensible  occupation  was  hunting. 
This  he  extended  occasionally  to  hunting  and 
capturing  such  runaway  negroes  as  might  from 
time  to  time,  for  fancied  or  real  grievances, 
leave  their  homes  and  take  to  the  woods. 


10  CLV  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

Once  or  twice  he  appeared  to  have  large 
amounts  of  money,  which  he  said  had.  been 
left  him,  and  which  he  had  gone  off  to  get. 
He  soon  ran  through  them,  however.  At 
other  times  he  used  to  hang  around  the  Cross 
roads  "  groggery,"  drinking  whenever  he 
could  get  whiskey.  Pie  was  a  heavy,  muscu 
lar  fellow,  with  black  hair,  a  red  skin,  and 
small  eyes ;  a  man  of  whom  one  would  at  once 
say  the  moral  fibres  were  as  coarse  as  a  door 
mat.  He  was  much  hated  by  the  negroes, 
and  generally  detested  by  the  whites ;  but  he 
possessed  a  certain  shrewdness  united  to  a 
deal  of  effrontery  which  made  him  feared  if 
not  popular  with  the  lowest  members  of  the 
lowest  class.  He  called  himself  "  Mr.  Green," 
but  a  long,  deep  purple  mark  on  the  side  of 
his  heavy  jaw  and  neck,  which  might  have 
been  a  scar,  but  which  he  averred  was  a  birth 
mark,  had  given  him  the  name  of  "Poke- 
berry."  Between  this  man  and  Bruce  there 
was  the  deepest  hatred,  which  neither  pre 
tended  to  conceal.  Pokeberry  was  a  born 
bully,  and  Bruce  brooked  no  insolence.  On 
one  occasion  when  they  met  at  Jones's  Cross 
roads,  and  Pokeberry  made  some  allusion  to 
the  story  of  his  meeting  the  runaway  negroes 


ON  NEWFOUND  EIVEE.  11 

and  hunting  with  them,  the  boy  retorted  by 
calling  him  a  "nigger-hunter."  A  fierce 
quarrel  ensued,  and  Bruce  had  got  much  ap 
plause  by  suddenly  attacking  the  bully  and 
felling  him  to  the  ground  with  a  stick  which 
lay  conveniently  at  hand.  From  this  time 
they  were  sworn  enemies. 

As  much  credit,  however,  as  Bruce  gained 
from  these  things,  his  reputation  011  New 
found  was  based  less  on  them  than  on  his 
well-known  resistance  to  his  father.  He  was 
the  only  person  who  dared  stand  out  against 
the  major. 


CHAPTER   III. 

"!T'S  becus  they's  so  high  sperited,"  a  thin 
dim-looking  fellow  of  about  forty  dressed  in 
an  old  suit,  of  which  the  coat  was  much  too 
large  for  him,  and  the  trousers  much  too  small, 
explained  drawlingly  one  afternoon  to  a  con 
templative  group  around  him  at  Jones's  Cross 
roads,  where  the  family  traits  of  the  Landons 
were  being  discussed. 

The  speaker  was  Sam  Mills.  Sam  was  a 
great  friend  of  the  major's,  and  was  an 
authority. 

"  It's  becus  they's  got  so  much  of  the  devil 
in  'em,"  declared  Squire  Johnson,  burning  at 
the  recollection  of  the  scarcely  veiled  con 
tempt  and  the  sharp-edged  speeches  with 
which  the  major  usually  deigned  to  recog 
nize  his  existence. 

"  Ef  I  ever  git  him  befo'  me,  I'm  gwine  to 
show  him  who's  th'  majistrit  in  this  district/" 

The  squire  was  a  large,  burly  man,  with  a 
smooth-shaven  red  face,  and  a  heavy  bunch 
12 


ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER.  13 

of  grizzled  whisker  growing  under  his  large 
chin. 

"Ef  you  does,"  said  one,  uyou  won'  be 
majistrit  long."  He  looked  over  towards 
Mills  for  corroboration. 

The  squire  was  turning  to  him  when  Mills 
intercepted  him. 

"You  ain'  never  gwine  to  git  him  befo' 
you,"  he  drawled;  "he  ain'  got  no  use  for 
law." 

The  justice  turned  his  quid  of  tobacco  over 
and  over  in  his  mouth,  chewing  with  a  force 
which  attested  the  violence  of  his  feelings. 
Mills  understood  the  act  as  if  it  had  been 
articulate  speech. 

"  I  heard  him  say  so  myself,"  he  asserted, 
as  if  he  had  been  contradicted. 

"  What  d'  he  say  ?  "  a  chewing  animal  on 
the  fence,  in  brown  jeans  and  an  old  straw  hat, 
found  the  energy  to  inquire. 

"  He  said  he'd  'a'  had  old  Dr.  Browne  up 
for  turning  his  cows  into  his  corn  long  ago 
if  th'  had  'a'  had  a  jestice  with  any  sense ; 
but  he  ruther  let  the  cows  eat  his  corn  than 
make  a  fool  of  heself  going  befo'  a  fool  to 
try  an'  git  jestice." 

There  was  a  gleam  of  satisfaction  in  the 


14  ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

small  gray  eyes  of  the  speaker  as  he  glanced 
over  at  the  man  in  the  chair,  and  saw  how 
his  shafts  had  penetrated  his  armor  of  self- 
conceit.  The  individual  referred  to,  whose 
mouth  was  too  full  to  admit  of  an  attempt  to 
speak,  chewed  rancorously. 

"  He  ain'  never  forgive  me  for  goin'  against 
him  when  he  run  for  the  Convention,"  he 
said,  wiping  his  stained  mouth  on  the  palm 
of  his  hand. 

"He  ain'  never  forgive  you  for  whippin' 
that  nigger  Dick  of  his  whar  you  all  caught 
out  without  a  pass  that  night,"  said  Mills, 
with  the  air  of  a  man  who  knows  the  secret 
things.  "  He  said  you  an'  Pokeberry  was 
the  cusses  of  the  county  an'  stirred  up  mo' 
trouble  with  the  niggers  'n  anything  else." 

The  magistrate  swore  under  his  breath. 
Being  classed  with  Pokeberry  was  more  than 
he  could  stand. 

"  Ef  I  foun'  a  nigger  roamin'  aroun'  -with 
out  a  pass,  was  I  to  change  the  law  becus 
'twas  one  of  his  niggers  ?  "  he  said,  in  a  com 
plaining  tone. 

"  He  said  'twant  the  law ;  that  the  nigger 
give  a  good  excuse :  he  told  you  he  was  gwine 
for  th'  doctor,  and  he  was  on  a  mule ;  and  if 


ON  NEWFOUND  EIVE&.  15 

you'd  'a'  had  any  sense  you  would  'a'  knowed 
it.  He  said  he  don't  allow  nobody  to  touch 
one  o'  his  niggers ;  and  he  said  the  law  talks 
about  discretion  of  them  whar  am'  got  as 
much  discretion  as  his  horse." 

"  Them  Landons  is  the  hard  feelin'est  folks 
in  Ameriky.  They's  wuss  'n  Injuns ! "  de 
clared  the  dispenser  of  justice. 

"  Don'  know  'bout  that,"  drawled  Mills ; 
"  but  he  cert'ny's  got  some'n  against  you.  I 
don'  think  you'll  git  his  endorsement  next 
time." 

This  sally  provoked  a  chuckle  of  amuse 
ment  from  the  speaker  and  his  auditors, 
which  was  so  distasteful  to  the  justice  that 
he  rose. 

"  I  don'  ixpect  him  and  I  don'  want  him," 
he  declared,  looking  defiantly  at  his  torment 
ors.  "  Ef  I  ever  git  him  befo'  me,  I'll  show 
him  who's  the  jestice  in  this  district" 

He  stalked  over  to  where  his  lean  horse 
stood  tied  to  the  fence,  and  prepared  to 
leave. 

"  He  says  the  squa'r  don'  know  as  much 
law  as  his  horse,"  said  Mills,  in  a  confidential 
undertone.  "  He  says  if  he  had  known  what 
a  fool  he  was,  he'd  'a'  took  the  place  himself." 


1C  ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

"  Fd  like  to  see  the  major  befo'  him  onct," 
hazarded  his  companion. 

"  You'd  see  the  ha'r  fly,"  was  Mills's  reply. 

"  They  is  a  curisome  folks,"  he  added  medi 
tatively,  presently,  after  a  pause  during  which 
the  pompous  old  magistrate  had  mounted  his 
dejected  beast  and  ridden  away. 

"  Ain'  a  kinder-hearteder  man  in  th'  worl' 
than  the  ole  major  if  you  take  him  right; 
but  you  can't  shove  him,  not  a  inch,  —  not 
a  inch,"  he  repeated. 

A  grunt  of  acquiescence  from  his  compan 
ions  reached  him. 

They  were  ruminant  animals,  these  quiet 
dwellers  on  Newfound;  they  chewed  their 
straws,  or  tobacco,  as  placidly  as  oxen.  Mills 
evidently  did  not  expect  any  other  answer, 
for  he  proceeded. 

"  When  my  ole  ooman  was  took  down  that 
time,  he  corned  over  thar  mo'  reg'lar  'n  th' 
doctor,  and  he  knowed  what  to  do  for  her  jes' 
as  good  as  him." 

The  slanting  sun  fell  through  the  trees  on 
the  little  group  in  their  coarse,  rusty,  old 
coats,  and  lit  up  their  rugged  faces. 

"  But  if  you  stir  'im  up,  umph !  "  (The  in 
articulate  grunt  expressed  fully  the  speaker's 


O.V  NEWFOUND  RIVER.  17 

views.)  ''What  you  heard  me  tell  the  ole 
squa'r  thar  jes'  now  is  the  truth.  He  ain' 
never  gwine  forgive  him.  He  ain'  th'  for- 
givin'  kind." 

"Ain'  but  two  folks  in  th'  worl'  he  don' 
like,  —  the  squa'r  an'  ole  Dr.  Browne." 

"Three,  you  ought  to  say,"  interrupted 
one  of  his  friends,  a  short,  wiry,  sunburned, 
red-headed  fellow  named  Hall,  with  a  turned- 
up  nose  and  a  big  mouth.  —  "  An'  Pokeberry. 
Thar  he  comes  now." 

The  members  of  the  group  turned  them 
selves  lazily  and  glanced  up  the  sandy  road, 
down  which,  at  a  slouching  pace,  came  a 
stout,  heavy-set  man  of  about  thirty,  with  a 
gun  thrown  across  his  arm,  and  two  thin, 
undersized,  spotted  hounds  walking  at  his 
heel. 

The  contemplation  of  Pokeberry  as  he 
approached  appeared  to  engross  all  the  fac 
ulties  of  the  little  group  against  the  fence, 
and  they  chewed  their  tobacco  in  silence 
until  he  had  turned  in  at  the  open  door  of 
the  little  store  and  disappeared  from  their 
view. 

"Yes,  an'  Pokeberry,"  said  Mills,  taking 
up  the  thread  just  where  he  had  left  off. 


18  ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

"He  put  him  an'  the  squa'r  together.  He 
said  he  won't  have  him  trackin'  his  uiggers 
with  houn's." 

"  Houn's  cain't  hurt  nobody,"  drawled  one 
of  the  group.  "  Houn's  is  the  feardest  dogs 
in  the  worl'." 

44  'Taint  that,"  explained  Mills,  with  superi 
ority.  "  He  says,  'tis  the  feelin'." 

"  I  wonder  the  major  ain'  never  had  the 
squa'r  turned  out  ?  "  said  a  man  on  the  fence. 

44  Nor ;  he  wouldn'  put  himself  out  enough 
to  do  that,"  explained  Mills.  44He  knows 
the  squa'r  is  po',  and  he  won't  take  no  step 
to  take  the  office  away  from  him." 

44 1  b'lieve  he'd  rather  keep  the  squa'r  in 
than  to  turn  him  out,"  suggested  Hall,  who 
had  some  sense  of  humor.  44If  he  was  to 
los'  him,  he  wouldn'  have  nobody  to  abuse." 

44  He  could  abuse  that  tother  ole  man  crost 
the  river  yonder  where's  got  his  land,"  said 
Mills,  with  a  sideways  nod  of  his  head  to  the 
smoky  ridge  away  across  the  wooded  bottom 
to  the  right,  through  which  Newfound  crept. 

44  That's  so,"  assented  Hall,  cordially. 
44  Wonder  what  makes  the  major  d'spise  him 
so?  Becus  he  wouldn'  sell  him  the  ole 
place?" 


ON  NEWFOUND  UIVER.  19 

"Nor;  becus  he's  so  curious;  becus  he 
won't  have  nothin'  'tall  to  do  with  nobody, 
and  jes'  keeps  himself  shet  up  with  them  two 
ole  niggers  an'  that  little  gal  o'  his.  They 
say,  to  be  sure,  he's  mighty  good  to  her  — 
leastways,  so  the  niggers  says,  and  they 
knows  everything." 

"  The  major  says  he  ain'  never  been  able  to 
lay  eyes  on  him  since  he  come  heah  an'  settle 
down  on  that  place  right  crost  the  river  from 
him,  where  his  fathers  was  born  and  raised, 
and  where  by  rights  b'longest  to  him  anyhow. 
He  says  he  shet  himself  up  like  a  snake  in  his 
hole,  and  he  wisht  he'd  shet  his  cows  up  too." 

There  was  a  gleam  of  amusement  at  the 
witticism  about  the  cows  which  was  appreci 
ated  by  the  plain  farmer  folk. 

"  Ain'  never  seen  him  in  that  time,"  re 
peated  one  or  two.  "  Does  look  like  some 
thing  was  wrong." 

This  was  enough  in  a  neighborhood  where 
every  incident  of  every  man's  life  was  as  well 
known  and  as  freely  canvassed  by  his  neigh 
bors  as  if  it  had  happened  to  themselves.  It 
was  inexplicable  except  on  the  theory  of  either 
madness  or  crime,  and,  like  more  enlightened 
people,  the  dwellers  on  Newfound  chose  the 


20  ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

less  charitable  theory.  As,  however,  it  was 
not  the  custom  under  that  civilization  for  a 
man  to  interfere  with  any  one  else  unless 
some  personal  act  was  committed  which  pecul 
iarly  affected  him,  the  old  recluse  with  his  two 
attendants  was  left  unmolested  in  his  pine- 
surrounded  hermitage;  and  his  wealthy  neigh 
bor  contented  himself  with  abusing  him,  and 
with  forbidding  Bruce  ever  to  extend  his  fish 
ing  or  hunting  excursions  to  the  other  side  of 
the  little  river,  or  even  to  go  on  his  land. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

WHETHER  it  was  that  the  best  fishing-holes 
were  on  Dr.  Browne's  side  of  the  river,  and 
that  the  duck  especially  loved  the  "  collard-" 
filled  cove  which  the  backwater  from  the 
major's  mill-pond  made  on  that  bank,  or 
whether  it  was  Brace's  natural  and  inevitable 
propensity  to  do  that  which  was  forbidden, 
the  boy  very  shortly  disobeyed  his  father's 
injunction.  He  came  home  one  day  with  a 
fine  string  of  fish  which  he  boldly  announced 
that  he  and  Dick  had  caught  on  Dr.  Browne's 
bank. 

The  major  was  immediately  in  a  passion. 
He  declared  that  Bruce  had  ruined  Dick 
and  made  him  a  runaway,  and  wound  up  by 
demanding  that  the  boy  should  with  his  own 
hands  immediately  take  the  fish  straight  back 
to  their  owner. 

Bruce  refused. 

There  was  a  pitched  battle,  in  which  the 
major  gave  Bruce,  as  usual,  a  tremendous 

21 


22  ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

thrashing ;  but  received  still  the  same  dogged 
reply  lie  had  made  him  from  the  first,  "  I 
won't  do  it  if  you  kill  me."  Then  he  ordered 
him  to  bed. 

The  boy  went,  though  it  •  was  early  in  the 
afternoon. 

Then  his  mother,  who  always  acted  the 
peacemaker  between  the  two,  went  up  stairs 
to  him.  Bruce  was  lying  in  bed,  looking 
longingly  out  of  the  window.  His  eyes  had 
an  angry  gleam  in  them,  and  his  mouth  was 
drawn.  It  is  not  far,  however,  from  a 
mother's  heart  to  her  son's,  and  in  a  few 
moments  the  boy  was  weeping  in  his  mother's 
arms.  Her  tenderness  brought  the  submis 
sion  which  the  major's  discipline  had  failed 
to  secure.  Sitting  on  the  bed  by  the  boy, 
holding  his  hand  in  both  of  hers,  she  told 
him  a  story. 

It  was  that  long  years  before  when  his 
father  was  a  boy  just  his  age,  he  had  had  an 
elder  brother  named  Bruce.  He  was  wilful 
and  disobedient;  defied  all  authority.  One 
day  his  father,  angered  at  his  insubordina 
tion,  in  a  passion  said  to  him  that  he  was 
a  disgrace  to  the  name  he  bore.  "  Then  I 
will  never  disgrace  it  any  more,"  he  said 


ON  NEWFOUND  EIVEE.  23 

angrily ;  "  for  I  never  will  bear  it  again,"  and 
with  that  he  had  rushed  out  of  the  house 
and  disappeared.  The  next  day  his  hat  was 
found  floating  on  the  pond.  The  dam  was 
cut,  the  river  was  dragged,  and  every  effort 
was  made  to  recover  the  body,  but  in  vain. 
It  killed  his  mother,  and  embittered  his 
father's  whole  after-life.  He  never  got  over 
it. 

Mrs.  Landon  broke  down,  weeping  at  the 
thought  of  the  sad,  bereft  mother.  She  leaned 
over  and  drew  her  son  to  her  bosom,  and  kissed 
him  agai*  and  again. 

"  O  Bruce,  Bruce  !  my  son !  my  son  !  "  she 
sobbed. 

In  a  little  while  Bruce  came  down  and  said 
he  would  take  the  fish  back.  He,  however, 
announced  boldly  that  he  was  going  because 
his  mother  wished  him  to  go,  and  thought 
that  he  ought  not  to  catch  fish  on  another's 
land  without  permission,  and  not  because  he 
had  been  whipped. 

The  boy's  feelings  as,  after  he  crossed  the 
river,  he  rode  his  colt  along  the  old  road 
through  the  pines  were  so  strange  and  so 
complex  that  he  remembered  them  years 
afterwards.  It  was  the  first  time  he  had  ever 


24  O.V  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

been  on  the  place,  and  he  had  never  seen  any 
one  who  had  been  there  except  Dick  Run 
away. 

The  shame  he  felt  as  he  rode  along  at  hav 
ing  to  confess  that  he  had  caught  the  fish  on 
another's  property  without  permission  gave 
way  to  a  feeling  of  curiosity  as  he  came  in 
sight  of  the  dense  hedge  of  cedars  which  sur 
rounded  the  yard  as  with  a  wall.  The  pines 
grew  up  almost  to  the  hedge.  He  passed  be 
tween  two  old  leaning  gate-posts  from  one  of 
which  hung  the  broken  fragment  of  an  ancient 
gate,  and  found  himself  in  a  yard  •!!  grown 
up  in  weeds  and  bushes.  Just  before  him 
was  a  long,  low,  weather-stained  frame-dwell 
ing  with  a  hipped  roof,  queer  wings,  and 
quaint  dormer  windows  jutting  out. 

Bruce  rode  up,  and  stopped  in  front  of  the 
door.  As  no  one  appeared,  he  called, 

"  Hello  ! " 

From  an  old  and  ruinous  out-building  came 
back,  "  Hello ! "  but  there  was  no  one  in  sight. 

"  Hello  !  "  he  called  again,  and  again  came 
the  short  reply,  "  Hello !"  which  he  found 
was  nothing  but  an  echo  from  the  old  build 
ing  at  the  side. 

After  waiting  a  moment,  he  decided  that 


ON  NEWFOUND  EIVER.  25 

he  could  not  have  been  seen,  and  rode  on  and 
tied  his  horse  to  an  overhanging  limb,  and 
went  up  to  the  door. 

He  knocked.  The  stillness  was  so  intense 
that  the  sound  of  his  rapping  made  him  jump. 
He  was  about  to  leave  and  go  around  to  the 
other  side  of  the  house,  when  a  door  opened 
at  the  far  end  of  the  passage,  and  an  elderly 
negro  woman,  thin  and  black,  and  with  her 
head  tied  up  in  a  handkerchief,  appeared  and 
came  slowly  towards  him. 

"  Good  evening,"  said  Bruce,  and  then, 
without  waiting  for  her  to  speak,  began 
rapidly : 

"Here  is  a  string  of  fish  I  caught  down 
yonder  on  your  side  of  the  pond,  and  my 
mother  sent  me  to  bring  them  back."  He 
paused  to  swallow,  for  his  throat  was  dry. 

"  Who  you  say  sent  'em  ? "  asked  the 
woman,  looking  at  them  curiously. 

"  My  mother,  —  my  father  —  Major  Landon. 
I  caught  them." 

The  woman's  face  brightened. 

"  Thankee,  little  marster,"  she  said. 

The  boy  saw  that  she  considered  them  a 
present.  The  temptation  was  strong  to  leave 
her  under  the  impression  ;  for  he  had  told  her 


26  ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

once  why  he  had  brought  them  back;  but 
Bruce  was  as  honest  as  day.  A  Landon 
would  not  lie.  He  thought  of  that  saying 
of  Brian  de  Bois  Guilbert,  "  Many  a  law  and 
many  a  commandment  have  I  broken ;  but 
my  word  never,"  and  he  gulped  out, 

"  They  are  not  a  present  —  I  caught  them 
on  this  side,  —  on  your  side,  and  my  mother 
-and    my    father  —  sent    them    back:    my 
father  is  Major  Landon." 

"  What's  all  this  ?  "  inquired  a  stern  voice. 

Bruce  turned  in  amazement  at  the  sound  of 
the  voice.  An  old  gentleman,  tall  and  gray, 
stood  behind  him. 

"  What  was  that  you  were  saying  ? "  he 
asked  sharply,  his  keen  dark  eyes  gleaming 
from  beneath  his  shaggy  white  eyebrows. 
The  stern  voice  and  the  flash  of  the  deep 
eyes  seemed  so  familiar  to  the  boy,  that  he 
insensibly  assumed  a  hostile  attitude.  But 
he  went  through  his  formula  honestly. 

"I  caught  some  fish  on  your  side  of  the 
river,  and  I  have  brought  them  back,  as  my 
mother  and  father  thought  I  ought  not  to 
have  done  it  without  permission." 

The  sturdy  honesty  of  the  boy  and  the 
evident  struggle  he  underwent  attracted  the 


ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER.  27 

old  man,  and  a  kindly  light  stole  into  his 
eyes. 

"  So  you  caught  them  without  permission, 
did  you,  and  they  made  you  bring  them 
back?" 

A  curious  look  shone  even  through  his 
long  beard. 

"  I  brought  them  because  my  mother  wanted 
me  to  do  it,"  said  Bruce  doggedly. 

"  Oh,  because  your  mother  wanted  it  ?  "  he 
muttered.  He  had  averted  his  face  slightly, 
but  now  he  turned  to  the  boy,  and  laying 
his  hand  on  his  head,  he  said  gently, 

"  You  have  my  permission  to  fish  or  hunt, 
or  do  anything  you  wish  anywhere  on  my 
property;  but,  my  son,  remember  this,  'Honor 
thy  father  and  thy  mother,  that  thy  days 
may  be  long  in  the  land  which  the  Lord  thy 
God  giveth  thee.' "  He  suddenly  turned  and 
walked  into  the  house. 

When  Bruce  came  home  that  night  he 
avowed  himself  the  friend  of  his  new  ac 
quaintance,  and  from  that  time  he  was  his 
steadfast  champion. 

He  gave  notice  of  the  permission  he  had 
received,  and  boldly  announced  his  purpose 
to  avail  himself  of  it.  There  was  another 


28  ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

battle  which  might  be  said  to  have  been 
drawn,  as  neither  side  was  conquered,  and 
each  stood  at  the  end  just  where  he  stood 
at  the  beginning  of  the  contest. 

It  was  not  very  long  afterwards  that  he 
carried  out  his  purpose,  and  crossing  the 
pond  went  over  to  the  forbidden  bank.  The 
ducks  he  was  after,  however,  were  not  found, 
having  been  probably  frightened  off  by  the 
cows  that  were  grazing  down  in  the  marsh, 
and  whose  bells  he  heard  in  the  distance. 
He  followed  a  narrow  path  which  led  along 
the  edge  of  a  little  inlet  filled  with  tasselled 
alder  bushes.  Up  at  its  further  point  inland 
a  fine  spring  bubbled  from  beneath  a  flat 
rock  above  which  towered  a  poplar,  straight 
and  clean  of  limb  for  fifty  feet.  Another 
path  came  down  the  hill  to  the  spring  from 
the  woods  above.  The  water  from  the  spring 
for  some  distance  ran  down  rippling  over  a 
bed  of  clean  sand  just  beside  the  path  and 
then  turned  away  into  the  thickets  of  alders. 

Bruce,  laying  his  gun  down,  stooped  and 
drank  at  the  spring,  and  then  flung  himself 
on  the  ground  at  the  foot  of  the  poplar,  and 
fixing  his  head  comfortably,  gazed  up  at  the 
blue  summer  sky.  He  heard  the  faint  clatter 


ON  NEWFOUND  EIVEE.  29 

of  the  cow-bells  below  him,  softened  by  the 
distance  to  a  low,  mellow,  and  irregular 
tinkle.  He  heard  the  water  purling  over 
some  pebbles  close  by;  he  heard  a  wood- 
wren's  bright  note  in  a  tree  above ;  he  heard 
the  faint  call  of  his  father's  ploughmen  across 
the  pond  to  their  teams,  and  then  —  he  felt 
a  hand  or  something  011  his  face,  and  then  — 
some  one  kissed  him ;  and,  opening  his  eyes, 
he  found  himself  looking  up  into  the  wide- 
open,  and  somewhat  startled  big  brown  eyes 
of  a  little  girl  who  was  kneeling  beside  him, 
bending  over  him  with  a  look  of  mingled 
wonderment  and  pleasure.  Her  cheeks  were 
as  pink  as  roses,  and  her  curling  hair  was 
hanging  in  tangles  on  either  side  of  her 
throat,  leaving  her  oval  face  like  a  picture 
set  in  a  frame  of  loosely  twisted  dull  red 
gold. 

As  Bruce  opened  his  eyes,  she  drew  back 
with  a  start. 

"  Oh,  it's  come  true  !  "  she  exclaimed  with 
a  little  gasp,  throwing  herself  back  and  sitting 
on  her  feet,  and  clasping  her  small  hands 
tightly  in  her  excitement.  Her  great  dark 
eyes  were  dancing  in  her  head. 

The  child  was  so  pretty  that  the  boy  lay 


30  ON  NEWFOUND  EIVER. 

still  with  his  eyes  on  her,  fearing  that  a 
motion  might  frighten  her. 

"What  has  come  true  ?"  he  asked  presently. 

"What  grandpapa  and  mammy  read  me 
out  of  the  fairy  hook,"  she  said,  throwing  her 
hair  hack  out  of  her  way. 

"What  was  that?" 

"  Why,  about  the  prince  who  came  down 
out  of  the  sky ;  (but  he  was  asleep,)  and  the 
princess  that  kissed  him,  and  waked  him  up, 
and  made  him  love  her,  and  they  lived  hap 
pily  together  all  their  lives." 

"  Oh !  about  that !  "  said  Bruce,  definitely. 

"  Aren't  you  the  prince  ?  "  she  asked  sweetly, 
moved  by  a  faint  suspicion  at  something  in 
his  voice. 

"  You  are  the  princess,  at  any  rate,"  said 
the  boy,  gallantly,  raising  himself  on  his 
elbow  and  looking  at  her  with  admiration. 

"No,  I'm  not  the  princess;  I'm  nothing 
but  a  little  girl ;  but  when  I  found  you  here 
I  knew  you  were  the  prince,  and  I  thought  it 
might  do  even  if  I  were  not  the  princess,  and 
I  do  want  somebody  to  play  with  so  bad." 
The  little  face  was  quite  pitiful. 

"  Grandpapa  an'  mammy  an'  Unc'  Folium 
an'  Laz'rus  and  George  Washington  do  all 


ON  NEWFOUND  EIVEE.  31 

they  can ;  but  I  want  a  prince.  Aren't  you 
a  prince,  sure  enough?  "  She  asked  the  ques 
tion  with  a  sudden  return  of  faith,  struck, 
perhaps,  by  the  smile  which  lit  up  the  hand 
some  face  of  her  companion. 

"  Well,  they  don't  have  many  princes 
around  here,"  said  Bruce,  evasively,  and  then 
a  sudden  thought  struck  him.  "I  will  play 
that  I  am  your  prince." 

"  Oh,  will  you?  And  you  will  love  me 
and  play  with  me  ?  " 

She  leant  forward,  and  in  her  earnestness 
put  one  little  plump,  brown  hand  on  the  back 
of  Bruce's.  It  thrilled  him,  boy  as  he  was, 
with  a  sudden  sense  of  ownership  and  pro 
tection. 

"  Yes,"  he  nodded. 

"And  you  will  be  good  to  Laz'rus  and 
George  Washington  ?  " 

Bruce  nodded  affirmatively;  then  in 
quired, 

"Who  are  they?" 

"  Why,  they  are  my  cats,  and  they  both 
have  kittens." 

"Have  they?"  exclaimed  Bruce,  in  un 
feigned  surprise  at  this  astonishing  informa 
tion. 


32  ON  NEWFOUND  RIVEE. 

She  nodded : 

«Umh—  umh  — !" 

"What  is  your  name,  Prince?"  she  asked 
presently. 

"  Bruce." 

"  Oh,  I  know :  — -  Bruce,  prince  of  Scotland. 
Grandpapa  told  me  about  him.  I'm  so  glad ! 
I  was  afraid  maybe  you  were  an  Eastern 
prince." 

"  No,"  said  Bruce ;  "  I  am  not  one  of  those. 
Do  you  think  I  look  like  one  ?  " 

"Well,  you  must  be  mighty  rich;"  she 
gazed  at  his  watch-chain  with  a  look  of  ap 
praisement;  "but  they  wear  chewnics,  and 
are  black  like  Unc'  Folium." 

"Who  is  Unc'  Folium?"  asked  Bruce. 

"Unc'  Folium?  don't  you  know  him? 
He's  my  mammy's  husband,  and  my  grand 
papa's  body-servant." 

"  Who  is  your  grandpapa?  " 

"  Grandpapa  !  Oh,  he  don't  know  grand 
papa,"  she  laughed  in  glee.  "Well,  how 
funny!  why,  he's  my  grandpapa,  —  my  grand 
father,  you  know,"  she  explained. 

"  What's  his  name  ?  " 

"What's  his  name?  Why,  he  hasn't  got 
any  name  —  he's  just  grandpapa,  so.  Oh, 


ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER.  33 

yes ;  mammy  and  Unc'  Folium  call  him  Mas 
ter.     I  reckon  that  must  be  his  name." 

"No,  that  isn't  a  name  at  all,"  urged 
Bruce  ;  "  they  call  him  that  because  they  are 
slaves." 

"They  aren't  slaves!  My  mammy  ain't 
any  slave  !  "  exclaimed  the  child. 

"  Oh,  ain't  she  ?  Where  do  you  live  ?  "  he 
asked. 

"  Up  there,  at  home."  She  pointed  up  the 
path. 

The  cow-bells  sounded  more  distinctly,  as 
the  cows  passed  up  the  hill.  She  rose  and 
brushed  the  leaves  and  small  sticks  from  her 
dress. 

"It's  getting  late;  I  must  go.  I  hear 
Teensey  going  home;  mammy's  got  her. 
Will  you  come  with  me  ?  " 

"  No,  I  must  go  home,"  said  Bruce. 

"  Well,  will  you  come  again  to-morrow  ?  " 

"  Yes  ;  good  evening." 

"Good  evening,  Prince  Bruce."  —  She  put 
up  her  mouth  to  be  kissed,  and  the  boy 
stooped  and  kissed  her  gently. 

"  Run  away,  and  I  will  wait  until  you  are 
at  the  top  of  the  hill,"  he  said  coaxingly. 
She  started,  and  then  stopped. 


34  ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

"Will  you  play  with  me?"  she  asked, 
turning  and  looking  back  at  him. 

"  Yes ;  run  along." 

"  And  you  will  come  back  to-morrow  ?  " 

"  Yes ;  to-morrow  afternoon." 

uYes;  when  mammy  comes  after  the 
cows  ?  " 

"  Yes." 

"Good  by."  And  she  ran  up  the  hill,  her 
little  bare  legs  shining,  and  her  loose  hair 
streaming  behind  her. 


CHAPTER   V. 

WHEN  Bruce  reached  home  that  evening 
he  gave  so  graphic  a  description  of  his  meet 
ing  with  the  little  girl  that  his  father  was 
•too  much  interested  to  upbraid  him  with  his 
disobedience,  and  his  mother  was  outspoken 
in  her  sympathy. 

"  What  was  her  name  ?  "  she  asked. 

"I  didn't  think  to  ask  her,"  Bruce  replied. 

"What,  sir!  Kiss  a  girl,  and  not  know 
who  she  is  ?  "  said  his  father. 

"She  was  mighty  pretty,"  responded  the 
boy,  nai'vely. 

"  Oh,  she  was  ?  The  name  then  doesn't 
make  so  much  difference,"  laughed  his 
father. 

"  Oh,  yes !  her  name  is  Margaret  Reid," 
said  Bruce.  "  Sam  Mills  told  me  so  once." 

The  next  afternoon  Bruce  was  true  to  his 
appointment;  but  when  he  arrived  at  the 
spring,  his  little  friend  was  not  there.  After 
waiting  what,  in  his  boyish  impatience,  ap- 

35 


36  ON  NEWFOUND   RIVER. 

peared  to  him  an  age,  he  started  up  the  path 
which  led  up  the  hill.  Just  before  reaching 
the  top,  however,  he  heard  a  coaxing  voice 
calling,  "  Kitty,  Kitty,  Kitty !  Come  along, 
Kitty  !  "  and  through  the  woods  at  a  little  dis 
tance  appeared  his  little  girl.  Her  head  was 
bare,  and  she  was  carrying  something  in  her 
large  poke  bonnet,  the  edges  of  which  she 
was  with  much  pains  keeping  together,  whilst 
behind  her,  with  tails  erect,  walked  two  cats, 
mewing  and  looking  up  at  her. 

At  sight  of  Bruce  she  smiled  and  quickened 
her  pace. 

"  Oh,  have  you  come  ? "  she  called  in  a 
pleased  tone.  "  T  was  late  because  George 
Washington  wouldn't  come,  and  King  Alfred 
got  under  the  porch  and  spit  at  me.  —  Get 
back  there  ! "  This  was  to  a  kitten  whose  lit 
tle  black  head  was  protruding  from  the  bon 
net. 

"  Which  is  George  Washington  ?  "  asked 
Bruce. 

"  That's  she,  with  the  white  nose.  And 
King  Alfred  is  her  kitten.  Here  they  are." 
And  she  suddenly  let  go  one  side  of  the  cal 
ico  bonnet  and  poured  out  on  the  ground 
a  half-dozen  kittens,  on  which  the  two  cats 


ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER.  37 

immediately  pounced  with  maternal  solici 
tude. 

"King  Alfred  will  never  go  to  heaven," 
she  said  suddenly,  with  that  serious  manner 
which  characterized  her  utterances. 

"Why,  cats  don't  go  to  heaven,"  said 
Bruce. 

"  Oh,  they  do !  " 

"  Where  did  you  get  that  idea  ?  " 

"  Why,  grandpapa  says  that  everything 
that  loves  goes  to  heaven;  that  Heaven  is 
love." 

This  was  a  little  too  abstruse  for  the  boy ; 
but  he  saw  that  it  would  grieve  her  to  dis 
turb  her  belief,  so  he  asked, 

"  What  makes  you  think  that  King  Alfred 
won't  go  to  heaven  ?  " 

"  Because  he  doesn't  mind  what  is  said  to 
him." 

"Does  that  keep  people  from  going  to 
heaven  ?  " 

"  Yes ;  grandpapa  says  that  it's  the  aw -full 
est  thing  there  is." 

In  his  heart  Bruce  trusted  that  that  partic 
ular  sin  did  not  shut  the  gates  of  mercy 
beyond  hope  ;  but  he  said  nothing. 

"  Who  is  your  mamma?  "  he  asked  presently. 


38  O.V  XEWFOUND  RIVER. 

"  She  is  in  heaven,"  said  the  child,  simply. 

"  Who  is  your  papa?" 

"  Papa  is  there  too.     He  was  a  soldier." 

There  was  a  pause  in  which  she  was  mani 
festly  reflecting. 

"  Ban  quo  is  there  too,"  she  said  presently. 

"  Who  is  he  ?  "  inquired  Bruce,  with  a  dim 
recollection  of  having  read  of  some  one  of 
that  name,  he  could  not  recall  where. 

"  He's  grandpapa's  old  dog." 

"It  seems  to  be  a  very  large  place,"  he 
suggested. 

"  It  is,"  she  said  with  quiet  serenity. 

By  this  time  they  had  reached  the  spring, 
and  the  kittens  were  allowed  a  second  release 
from  their  confinement  in  the  bonnet. 

"I  told  grandpapa  about  you,"  she  said 
presently. 

"  You  did  ?     What  did  he  say  ?  " 

"He  said  that  you  were  not  a  prince  at 
all." 

"Did  he  say  that?" 

"  Yes ;  and  he  said  that  I  was  a  princess  in 
his  eyes."  She  seated  herself  on  the  ground 
beside  Bruce,  and  leaned  her  elbow  on  his 
knee  with  perfect  confidingness. 

"And  he  said  that  you  had  better  not  come 


ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER.  39 

up  there  —  up  home."  She  waved  her  little 
hand  up  towards  the  top  of  the  hill. 

"Ah!" 

"  Yes ;  because  your  father  would  not  like 
it." 

A  guilty  feeling  came  over  the  boy,  and  he 
felt  a  longing  to  leave  her  under  the  belief  in 
his  innocence  ;  but  he  said  resolutely, 

"  He  wouldn't." 

"Why  wouldn't  he  like  it?"  she  asked, 
with  the  calm  persistence  of  childhood. 

"I  don't  know;  he  doesn't  like  a  good 
many  things  I  do." 

"Oh,  doesn't  he?     I  do." 

The  unaffected  praise  of  the  child  was  very 
grateful  to  the  boy,  and  a  smile  of  pleasure 
came  over  his  handsome  face. 

"I  wish  we  could  live  together,  don't  you?" 
she  said,  suddenly  turning  and  nestling  up 
against  him  with  perfect  trustfulness. 

The  conndingness  of  the  act  was  so  sweet 
that  the  boy  stooped  over  and  kissed  her 
gently. 

"  I  wish  we  could,"  he  said. 

"  We  can  get  married,  and  I'll  give  you  my 
kitties,  and  you  can  have  my  mammy  and 
grandpapa." 


40  ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

"All  right,"  said  Bruce,  laughing  at  her 
seriousness. 

"  All  right.  I  told  grandpapa  last  night 
we  were  going  to  be  married." 

"  You  did  ?     What  did  he  say  ?  " 

"  At  first  he  laughed,  and  then  he  took  me 
up  on  his  knee  and  told  me  I  did  not  know 
what  I  was  talking  about.  And  he  said  that 
when  I  grew  up  you  would  'spise  me,  and 
that  I  would  hate  you ;  and  then  he  got  up 
and  walked  about  and  looked  so  angry  I  had 
to  climb  up  on  the  chair  and  kiss  him,  and 
tell  him  I  would  not  marry  anybody  but  him." 

She  had  grown  eloquent  as  she  narrated 
the  interview,  and  the  boy  thought  she  looked 
like  a  fairy,  as  she  stood  there  instinctively 
imitating  her  grandfather's  angry  gestures. 
When  she  had  ended  she  sank  down  beside 
him  again. 

"You  won't  'spise  me,  will  you?"  she  asked 
pleadingly. 

"  No,  that  I  won't,"  said  Bruce,  sincerely. 

"  And  you  will  play  with  me,  won't  you  ? 
because  I  did  wake  you  up,  didn't  I  ?  " 

"  Yes.     And  you  won't  ever  hate  me  ?  " 

"  No ;  and  here's  my  ring ;  it's  mine  ;  and 
you  must  keep  it  just  like  we  were  married, 


ON  NEWFOUND  RIVEE.  41 

and  —  there's  mammy  calling  me,  and  I  must 
go.  —  Come  here,  kitties  ! " 

She  made  a  rush  upon  the  kittens,  which 
were  drowsily  taking  their  suppers,  and  gath 
ering  them  up  tossed  them  irrto  her  bonnet 
without  much  reference  to  their  comfort, 
and  with  a  hasty  "  Good  by,"  ran  up  the  hill, 
hugging  her  precious  burden  to  her  bosom, 
and  followed  by  the  faithful  Lazarus  and 
George  Washington  mewing  faintly. 

That  evening  Bruce's  recital  was  not  re 
ceived  by  his  father  with  the  same  com 
placency  which  he  had  exhibited  the  evening 
before. 

"  I  thought  I  told  you  not  to  go  over  there 
again  ?  "  said  he,  sternly. 

"  You  did  not  tell  me  so  yesterday,"  as 
serted  the  boy. 

"  Did  not  tell  you  so  yesterday  ?  Do  you 
think,  sir,  that  I  have  nothing  else  to  do  but  to 
spend  my  time  telling  you  the  same  thing?" 

He  paused  for  a  moment's  reflection ;  then 
he  said, 

"Bruce,  I  want  you  to  promise  me  not  to 
go  over  there  again." 

The  boy  was  silent ;  but  the  dogged  look 
settled  on  his  face.  His  father  noted  it. 


42  ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER, 

"  I  should  think  you'd  be  ashamed  to  asso 
ciate  with  such  people.  They  are  low,  and 
worthless,  and  unfit  associates  for  a  gentle 
man,"  he  said  sneeringly. 

An  angry  light  came  into  the  boy's  eyes. 
"  They  are  not,"  he  said. 

"  Don't  contradict  me,  sir.  They  may  be 
very  fit  associates  for  you  if  you  have  a  taste 
for  such  companions ;  but  they  are  nothing 
but  common  people.  That  little  girl  is  the 
daughter  of  a  low,  common  man  like  Poke- 
berry  Green,  or  his  associates."  He  selected 
his  shaft  carefully. 

"  She  is  not,"  contradicted  the  boy,  defi 
antly.  "She  is  as  much  a  lady  —  as  —  as 
any  one,  —  and  I  will  go  there.  And  I  will 
marry  her  when  I  grow  up,  and  am  a  man." 
He  stood  before  his  father,  with  flashing  eyes 
and  fearless  mien. 

"  Go  to  your  room,  sir,"  said  the  major. 

Bruce  left  the  library  and  went  up  stairs 
to  his  room ;  but  his  determination  was  un 
changed. 

The  next  day  he  learned  that  he  was  to  be 
sent  off  to  school  at  once,  and  that  afternoon 
he  was  driven  away  in  the  carriage  on  his 
way  to  a  school  in  another  State. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

BRUCE  LANDON  remained  from  home  the 
best  part  of  eight  years.  The  major  de 
termined  to  give  him  not  only  the  best  edu 
cation,  but  the  advantages  of  travel  as  well. 
Bruce,  having  applied  himself,  easily  won 
enough  honors  to  satisfy  even  his  father's 
ambition.  The  Landons  had  been  noted  of 
old  for  their  distinction  at  William  and 
Mary,  and  Bruce's  successes  awakened  all 
his  father's  pride.  On  the  few  occasions 
when  Bruce  was  home  from  college  the  rela 
tions  between  them  were,  therefore,  com 
pletely  altered. 

During  this  period  things  on  Newfound 
remained  in  their  wonted  condition.  Eight 
years  made  little  difference  in  that  quiet  life. 
If  affairs  moved  at  all,  they  moved  so  slowly 
that  a  longer  arc  than  eight  years  was  needed 
to  detect  it.  The  pines  had  grown  closer 
about  Landon  Hill,  where  the  recluse  doctor 
still  kept  himself  shut  up.  The  major  still 

43 


44  ON  NEWFOUND  RIVEIt. 

gazed  at  the  old  place  across  the  low  grounds, 
and  still  cherished  a  negative  kind  of  ani 
mosity  against  his  neighbor,  declaiming  with 
much  rancor  of  expression  against  the  iniquity 
of  his  remaining  secluded  and  allowing  his 
cows  to  run  on  other  people.  Mills  and  Hall 
and  other  dwellers  on  the  river  still  absorbed 
and  reflected  mildly  the  major's  opinions. 
Squire  Johnson,  unmolested,  still  held  his 
little  office,  contenting  himself  with  an  as 
sertion  of  independence  behind  the  major's 
back.  And  Newfound  still  crept  lazily  be 
tween  its  low  wood  or  corn  covered  banks, 
moving,  like  the  people  who  lived  upon  it, 
slow,  calm,  sleepy. 

What  passed  within  the  pine-girt  hermi 
tage  where  Dr.  Browne  lived  with  his  grand 
daughter  and  two  old  domestics  no  one 
outside  knew.  The  little  negro  man  with 
his  quaint  old  faded  and  patched  uniform, 
his  worn  beaver,  and  his  exaggerated  manner, 
occasionally  paid  a  visit  to  the  mill  for  a  small 
bag  of  meal  or  flour,  or  to  the  post-office  to 
inquire  for  a  letter,  and  except  for  these  they 
held  no  more  communication  with  the  outer 
world  than  if  they  had  been  imprisoned  in  a 
dungeon. 


ON  NEWFOUND  EIVER.  45 

Suspicion,  fostered  by  Pokeberry  Green, 
centred  upon  the  old  recluse  with  rather 
more  defmiteness  than  before.  It  seemed  to 
have  a  little  more  foundation.  Pokeberry 
still  followed  his  ungracious  calling  of  trying 
to  recapture  runaway  negroes.  He  had  re 
ceived  another  legacy  which  he  had  quickly 
squandered.  Once  or  twice  Pokeberry  had 
started  a  report  that  Dr.  Browne  gave  aid  and 
comfort  to  the  runaways;  but  it  had  died 
out.  Had  any  one  else  but  this  man  circulated 
such  a  report  it  would  have  been  sufficient  to 
have  occasioned  an  investigation,  if  not  to 
have  driven  the  old  man  from  the  county. 
Had  there  not  been  the  overwhelming  cir 
cumstances  of  the  doctor's  suspicious  con 
duct,  Pokeberry's  character  was  so  bad  that 
nothing  he  said  could  have  had  any  weight. 
As  it  was,  the  two  together  were  just  sufficient 
to  keep  gossip  alive  about  the  owner  of  the 
old  Landon  place,  and  to  make  him  and 
everything  connected  with  him  a  matter  of 
keen  interest. 

The  eight  years  wrought  more  changes  in 
the  doctor's  granddaughter  than  in  almost 
any  one  else  on  Newfound.  The  little  girl 
that  had  found  the  prince  under  the  poplar 


46  ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

tree  beside  the  spring  grew  up  among  the 
pines  ;  her  companions  :  her  grandfather,  her 
mammy,  the  progeny  of  Lazarus  and  George 
Washington,  the  roses  and  hollyhocks  in  the 
ancient  tangled  garden,  and  the  friends  she 
found  in  the  few  old  volumes  in  the  bookcase. 
They  were  a  curious  lot:  Evelina,  Clarissa 
Harlow,  Sir  Charles  Grandison,  Pamela,  Sir 
Roger  de  Coverley,  Lord  Orville,  Lizzie 
Bennet,  Mr.  Darcy,  Emma  Woodhouse,  and 
a  few  others.  Her  grandfather  was  a  great 
sufferer  from  an  old  wound,  a  confirmed 
invalid,  and  was  often  confined  to  his  room 
and  chair. 

An  invalid  is  next  to  a  child  in  developing 
a  woman's  instincts.  She  read  to  him,  tended 
him,  and  petted  him  as  if  he  were  a  baby. 

Once  or  twice  she  ventured,  when  a  young 
girl,  to  accompany  her  mammy  to  the  Cross 
roads  store  to  make  a  few  little  purchases ; 
but  some  tipsy  men,  one  of  whom  had  a  long, 
ugly,  purple  scar  on  his  sunburned  cheek  and 
neck,  stared  so  at  the  straight,  handsome, 
half-grown  girl  with  her  large  brown  eyes 
under  her  coarse  hat,  that  she  never  again 
went  beyond  the  pines  in  which  was  her 
world.  Twice  she  met  the  same  man  with 


ON  NEWFOUND  EIVEE.  47 

the  purple  scar,  down  on  the  pond.  He  came 
upon  her  each  time  as  she  was  fishing.  He 
tried  to  talk  to  her ;  but  she  hastily  left  the 
pond  and  ran  home.  The  last  time,  he  said 
something  to  her  which  she  felt  was  imperti 
nence,  and  she  ever  afterwards  avoided  that 
part  of  the  pond. 

Pokeberry,  at  the  grocery,  had  drunkenly 
declared  his  devotion,  and  duly  declared 
there,  subsequently,  his  repulse. 

One  day  she  found  up  stairs  in  the  dark 
little  garret  several  old  trunks  covered  with 
dust  and  cobwebs.  She  opened  one  of  them 
and  found  it  filled  with  old  dresses,  and 
odds  and  ends  of  woman's  wear,  all  curious, 
but  rich.  They  must  have  been  nearly  a 
hundred  years  old.  Some  were  lawns,  filmy 
and  faded  as  if  with  age,  others  stiff  brocades 
with  long  waists  and  padded  petticoats  and 
stomachers.  They  made  her  eyes  open. 

Whom  could  they  have  belonged  to  ? 

She  took  them  out  tenderly  and  turned 
them  over  and  over  with  caressing  hands ; 
measured  them  by  her  own  straight,  supple 
figure,  and  in  her  fancy  pictured  them  as 
belonging  to  the  fine  ladies  she  knew  in  the 
brown  calf-backed  books  down  stairs.  She 


48  ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

ventured  to  ask  her  grandfather  about  them. 
He  seemed  startled  and  desired  her  not  to  go 
into  the  trunks.  Her  grandfather's  wish  was 
law  to  her,  and  she  went  no  more  for  a  long 
time.  One  day,  however,  she  asked  him 
about  her  mother.  He  became  too  agitated 
to  tell  her  a  great  deal,  except  that  she  had 
died  when  she,  Margaret,  was  born.  Marga 
ret  knew  that  her  father  had  been  killed  in  a 
battle.  And  this  was  all  she  knew  of  her 
father  or  mother  except  that  when  she  asked 
her  mammy  what  she  was  like  she  always 
told  her,  "  Like  you,  honey ;  jes'  your  size  an* 
all,  only  prettier." 

So  she  passed  her  time  growing  up,  with  her 
large  eyes,  and  her  sunny  hair,  tending  her 
grandfather  as  he  sat  in  his  old  armchair; 
living  with  her  friends  in  the  age-browned 
books  ;  fishing  in  the  pond ;  wandering  in  the 
pines;  going  after  the  cows;  tending,  be 
cause  they  were  pretty,  her  hollyhocks,  sweet- 
peas,  and  roses  in  the  garden,  as  wild,  yet  as 
much  at  home  among  them,  as  the  sparrows 
and  thrushes  which  built  in  the  lilacs. 

If,  as  she  ran  wild  about  the  place,  or  fol 
lowed  the  paths  through  the  pines  in  her 
search  for  the  vagrant  cows,  she  sometimes 


ON  NEWFOUND  EIVEE.  49 

glanced  over  across  the  placid  pond  and  the 
alder  thickets  to  the  green  low-grounds  and 
fields  of  Landon  Hall,  and  may  have  felt  a 
vague  surmise  as  to  the  boy  whom  she  had 
once  found  asleep  under  the  tree  by  the 
spring,  it  was  simply  an  act  of  memory,  and 
the  feeling  was  too  vague  to  take  definite 
shape. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

THE  eight  years  spent  by  Bruce  Landon  at 
school  and  college  had,  for  Bruce,  borne  fruit 
in  many  ways.  In  none,  however,  more  than 
in  the  change  in  the  relationship  between 
himself  and  his  father.  As  soon  as  they  were 
separated,  and  the  friction  of  wills  was  want 
ing,  they  became  great  friends  and  mutual 
admirers.  Bruce  could  not  but  admire  the 
stern  character  of  the  old  gentleman,  who  was 
inflexible  in  purpose,  indomitable  in  will,  and 
transparently  honest  in  every  word  and  act, 
however  intolerant  he  might  be  and  constitu 
tionally  incapable  of  yielding  his  opinion  once 
formed  on  any  subject.  On  the  other  hand, 
the  high  character  of  the  boy,  and  the  brilliant 
stand  he  had  taken  from  the  first,  and  which 
he  maintained  until  he  graduated  with  distin 
guished  honors,  had  caused  his  father  very 
early  in  his  course  to  forgive  his  boyish  way 
wardness,  and  to  overlook  the  infractions  of 
collegiate  discipline  which  were  reported  to 
60 


ON  NEWFOUND  EIVEE.  51 

him  from  time  to  time  with  more  or  less  fre 
quency.  It  was  only  when  Bruce  was  at 
home  for  the  holidays,  and  the  two  were 
thrown  together,  that  their  wills  came  in  con 
flict.  It  was  soon  apparent  to  both  that  the 
safest  way  to  preserve  the  delightful  relations 
between  them  was  to  remain  separated.  Thus 
it  was,  that  Bruce  was  at  home  very  little  dur 
ing  the  eight  years  of  his  school  and  college 
life,  and  usually  spent  his  vacations  in  travel. 
When,  therefore,  he  finally  came  home,  he  was 
almost  a  stranger. 

As  the  carriage  rolled  up  to  the  front  door, 
and  Bruce  sprang  out  on  the  sanded  walk, 
his  father  and  mother  both  came  running  out 
to  meet  him,  and  both  folded  him  in  their 
arms.  It  was  the  only  time  Major  Landon 
ever  so  far  unbent. 

The  straight  boy  had  become  a  tall,  straight 
man,  muscular  and  clean  as  a  race-horse. 

As,  after  the  custom  of  the  Landons,  on 
the  day  he  was  twenty-one  he  stood  for  meas 
urement  on  the  threshold  of  the  wide  wain 
scoted  picture-hung  hall,  with  his  back  to 
the  old  massive  mahogany  front  door,  where 
the  Landons  for  generations,  on  attaining  their 
majority,  had  been  measured  for  height  and 


52  ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

breadth,  there  had  hardly  been  one  in  all  the 
list  who  had  equalled  him. 

"Why,  Bruce,  you  are  the  champion  of 
three  generations ! "  exclaimed  his  mother, 
looking  up  at  his  mark  with  pride. 

"  No  ;  there  have  been  several  as  tall ;  and 
one,  the  old  general,  my  grandfather,  was 
taller  and  broader,"  corrected  his  father,  ex 
amining  the  door  closely  for  the  almost  oblit 
erated  marks.  The  young  man  cast  his  eyes 
across  the  hall  at  the  painting  of  his  ancestor 
dressed  in  the  military  dress  of  Marlborough's 
time. 

uHe  was  a  pretty  good-looking  fellow,"  he 
said,  with  lazy  admiration. 

"  So  is  his  descendant,"  smiled  his  mother. 

"  We  got  our  height  and  our  tempers  both 
from  him,  didn't  we  ?  " 

"  No,  sir ;  we  may  have  got  our  stature  from 
him,  but  we  got  our  tempers  from  the  devil," 
replied  the  major.  "No  one  but  the  devil 
can  ever  be  held  responsible  for  such  devilish 
tempers." 

"  I  quite  agree  with  you,"  said  the  young 
man,  complacently. 

"  I  am  pleased  to  receive  the  intelligence," 
replied  the  old  gentleman,  with  a  twinkle. 


ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER.  53 

44 1  believe  it  is  the  first  time  my  views  have 
ever  received  such  a  compliment." 

"  Oh,  no !  we  both  agree  in  admiration  of 
this  lady,  sir,"  said  Bruce,  putting  his  arm 
around  his  mother.  Mrs.  Landon  smiled  up 
at  him,  and  the  major  looked  pleased  at  the 
delicate  turn. 

"  There's  where  you  get  your  beauty," 
said  Mrs.  Landon,  pointing  across  the  hall 
to  a  full-length  portrait  of  a  lady,  quite 
young,  in  rich  brocade,  with  the  long  waist 
and  satin  petticoat  of  two  generations  before. 
The  clear-cut  face,  with  its  dark  .eyes,  was, 
indeed,  beautiful,  and  would  have  been  per 
fect,  but  for  the  haughtiness  which  shone 
even  through  the  painter's  art. 

"I  know  where  I  got  my  beauty,"  said 
Bruce,  leaning  down  and  kissing  his  mother. 
Mrs.  Landon  blushed  like  a  girl. 

"  But  my  grandmother  was  a  beauty,  wasn't 
she?" 

He  went  over  and  examined  the  portrait 
critically. 

44  It's  good  enough  for  a  Kneller,"  he  said. 
44  And  that  patrician  face  and  old  costume 
make  her  look  like  a  young  countess.  One 
might  fancy  her  turning  her  back  on  the 
prince  himself." 


54  ON  NEWFOUND  ElVER. 

"  She  would  have  done  it,"  said  his  father. 
"  She  turned  her  back  on  the  President.  He 
had  not  stood  up  to  your  grandfather.  It 
lost  my  father  the  senatorship.  But  he  always 
said  it  was  cheap  for  the  price." 

Bruce  found  himself  in  a  new  life,  almost 
wholly  unknown  to  him.  He  had  suddenly 
become  the  companion  of  the  man  who  had 
always  been  to  him  the  incarnation  of  pride 
and  reserve.  His  father  seemed  not  able  to 
let  him  get  out  of  his  sight.  If  he  went  only 
to  the  stables,  he  invited  him  to  come  with 
him.  He  told  him  of  all  his  affairs ;  consulted 
him ;  deferred  to  him.  At  the  same  time,  he 
was  treated  like  a  distinguished  guest.  It 
was  very  new  and  very  pleasant  to  him.  The 
best  wine  was  brought  from  the  cellar :  Ma 
deira  imported  by  his  grandfather.  The  major 
insisted  on  his  riding  his  saddle-horse,  and  he 
himself  rode  another. 

A  day  or  two  after  his  arrival  Bruce  was 
lounging  in  an  easy-chair  in  the  hall,  looking 
over  some  fishing-tackle  which  he  had  ex 
humed.  His  mother  was  near  by  engaged  in 
some  little  household  occupation;  but  with 
her  smiling  eyes  mainly  directed  towards  her 
son.  The  major  came  in  fuming.  His  neigh 
bor's  cows  were  in  his  corn. 


ON  NEWFOUND  EIVEE.  55 

"  In  there  again  !  "  he  said  to  his  wife.  "  I 
believe  he  thinks  my  cornfield  belongs  to 
him.  I  have  stood  it  too  long  already.  His 
cows  have  been  living  on  me  for  twenty  years, 
and  now  I  am  tired  of  it."  He  addressed 
Bruce. 

"  My  dear,  I  would  not  be  hasty,"  said  Mrs. 
Landon,  soothingly. 

"  Hasty !  you  don't  call  it  c  hasty,'  when 
I  have  been  fattening  his  cattle  for  twenty 
years,  do  you  ?  They  graze  in  my  cornfield 
as  if  it  were  nothing  but  his  marsh  pasture, 
sir.  But,  at  least,  I've  got  them  for  a  while. 
I've  made  Bailiff  have  them  driven  up  into 
my  barnyard,  and  there  they  shall  stay  till  he 
sends  for  them." 

He  was  speaking  to  Bruce. 

The  reference  to  the  pasture  or  the  marsh, 
or  something  brought  up  to  Bruce  the  mem 
ory  of  a  summer  evening  long  since ;  of  cow 
bells  tinkling  faintly,  and  of  drowsy  sounds 
broken  by  a  child's  voice.  How  long  ago 
it  all  appeared ! 

"What  ever  became  bf  your  queer  old 
neighbor  across  the  river,  whose  fish  I  used 
to  catch,  in  defiance  of  the  Decalogue  ?  "  he 
asked,  looking  up  ;  "  is  he  dead  ?  " 


56  O^V  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

"Dead?  No;  that  sort  don't  die.  That 
is  he,  now,"  said  his  father.  "It  is  a  pity 
I  did  not  let  you  catch  his  fish ;  I'd  have  got 
at  least  that  much  compensation,  for  he  has 
been  pasturing  his  old  cows  on  my  corn 
ever  since.  He  drives  them  over,  sir,  regu 
larly." 

"  Oh  !  now,  my  dear,  you  know  he  doesn't 
do  that,"  urged  Mrs.  Landon. 

"Then  they  fly,"  said  the  major,  dryly. 
He  pulled  off  his  gloves. 

"  What  a  stir  there  used  to  be  about  it ! " 
said  Bruce,  deep  in  reflection.  "I  wonder 
you  stand  it,  sir,"  he  added,  coming  to  the 
present  issue.  "  I'd  break  it  up.  I'd  sue  him. 
I'd  do  it  at  once." 

"  I'm  going  to  break  it  up.  I'll  take  your 
advice.  I  will  give  orders  to  my  overseer  to 
have  a  warrant  served  at  once,"  said  his 
father.  "  You  are  right.  It  will  be  tried  next 
Saturday,  at  Jones's  Crossroads.  You'd  better 
go  up  ;  I'll  give  you  the  case.  You  can  flesh 
your  maiden  sword.  I'd  like  to  have  you 
there." 

"No,  I  don't  know  that  I  will  take  the 
case,"  said  the  young  man,  languidly ;  "  but 
I  may.  I'll  go  up  and  see  the  fun,  anyhow. 


ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER.  57 

I  should  have  supposed  that  old  man  was 
dead.  He  appeared  very  feeble  the  only  time 
that  I  ever  saw  him." 

" No,  sir.  Dead?  Not  he.  He  has  com 
promised  with  the  devil  to  live  here  always, 
and  do  his  work  for  him,  I  believe." 

"What  an  old  wretch  he  must  be!"  said 
Bruce,  sympathetically.  "What  ever  became 
of  his  little  granddaughter,  whose  head  was 
so  full  of  nonsense  ?  Has  she  ever  married?  " 

"  No ;  my  neighbor,  Sam  Mills,  tells  me 
that  she  is  there  still.  I  have  never  seen  her. 
She  is  cracked,  too.  Sam  Mills  says  she  has 
a  great  reputation,  or  would  have,  except 
that  she  keeps  herself  shut  up  at  home  all 
the  time.  An  excellent  man,  Mills,"  he 
explained  to  his  son.  "I  have  a  very  high 
esteem  of  him.  An  honest,  upright  man. 
The  fact  is,  sir,  there  never  was  a  braver, 
better  people  than  our  population,  around 
through  this  country.  That  fellow  has  all 
the  instincts  of  a  gentleman.  He  is  a  philoso 
pher.  A  remarkable  man,  sir.  We  agree  on 
every  subject.  Now,  if  we  had  him  as  magis 
trate  !  —  " 

"  She  was  a  beautiful  child.  By  Jove  !  sir, 
I  believe  I  owe  her  my  education,"  laughed 


58  ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

Bruce,  ignoring  the  tribute  to  his  neighbor, 
Mills.  "I  remember  I  swore  to  marry  her, 
or  something,  and  you  shipped  me  off  next 
day,  post  haste." 

"  I  have  never  seen  her ;  but  she  is  very 
unpopular  in  the  neighborhood ;  at  least,  so 
Mills  tells  me.  It  seems  that  she  thinks  her 
self  better  than  these  other  common  people 
around  and  will  have  nothing  to  do  with 
them." 

"  Oh,  it  is  simply  prejudice,"  said  Mrs. 
Landon.  "  The  old  man  is  very  infirm,  and 
she  stays  at  home  to  take  care  of  him  —  that's 
all.  People  are  so  uncharitable." 

"  Why,  she  has  not  had  to  stay  at  home  for 
six  or  eight  years  on  that  account,  I  reckon ; 
and  I  am  not  so  well  satisfied  about  his  being 
infirm.  I  am  sure  as  to  his  moral  infirmity ; 
but  his  bodily  health  is  good  enough,  and  too 
good  for  his  neighbors'  security.  If  he  had 
been  a  gentleman,  he'd  have  let  me  have  that 
old  place  back.  I  offered  to  let  him  name  his 
own  price.  Why,  I  called  on  him  once,  sir, 
and  he  never  even  —  " 

uMy  dear,"  interrupted  Mrs.  Landon,  "I 
thought  you  had  forgiven  him." 

u  Forgiven  him  !    No  !    I  don't  believe  any 


ON  NEWFOUND   RIVER.  59 

one  forgives  unless  he  forgets,"  sniffed  the 
major. 

"  Do  they  still  keep  themselves  mewed  up 
in  their  fortress  as  they  used  to  do?  "  inquired 
Bruce,  examining  a  line  critically. 

"  Yes,  sir ;  he  has  never  been  off  the  place 
since  he  came  there,  that  I  know  of,  except 
at  night,  and  his  daughter,  or  granddaughter 
—  whichever  she  is  —  confines  herself  in  the 
same  way.  They  stay  at  home  and  send  the 
cows  around." 

"  Well,  it  is  nobody's  business  except  their 
own,"  suggested  Mrs.  Landon. 

"Nobody's  business  !  "  exclaimed  the  major, 
hotly.  "  Yes,  it  is,  — it's  everybody's  business 
when  a  man  behaves  in  that  extraordinary 
way;  it's  against  the  peace  and  dignity  of 
the  commonwealth!  If  it  wasn't  for  that 
lying  rascal,  Pokeberry's  saying  so,  I'd  be 
lieve  that  the  reports  about  him  are  true,  and 
that  he  is  one  of  these  Yankee  abolitionists." 

"  Why,  my  dear,  they  say  he  is  just  as 
kind  and  charitable  as  possible.  When  old 
Mrs.  Mills  was  sick,  he  used  to  go  over  there 
every  night  and  attend  her,  and  he  sent  her 
medicine;  and  when  Mr.  Hackett  had  his 
house  burnt  —  " 


60  ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

44  That  may  all  be  a  part  of  his  scheme.  It 
is  a  cheap  price  to  pay  for  security,  lie  ought 
to  have  been  investigated  and  run  out  long 
ago,"  asserted  the  major. 

"I  thought  she'd  have  married  before  this," 
said  Bruce,  irrelevantly.  "I  wonder  if  his 
granddaughter  is  pretty?"  he  added,  address 
ing  the  question  generally. 

"  They  say  she  is  quite  a  beauty,"  said  his 
mother. 

44  A  beauty !  No.  Who  ever  heard  of  one 
of  that  class  of  people  having  beauty?"  sniffed 
the  major.  u  They  say  that  Pokeberry  Green 
is  courting  her." 

Bruce  laid  his  line  down  in  his  astonish 
ment. 

44  That  creature !  Why,  he  used  to  be  a 
perfect  young  ruffian  !  " 

44  He  is  now,"  said  his  father;  44a  ruffian, 
a  drunkard,  and  a  thief.  But  he  is  in  love 
with  her,  I  understand,  — at  least,  there's  some 
story  about  them." 

44  Oh,  pshaw !  "  said  Mrs.  Landon.  "  I  did 
hear  that ;  but  it  was  contradicted.  I  heard 
that  he  fancied  himself  in  love  with  her, 
and  had  even  ventured  to  speak  to  her  once 
on  the  road ;  but  she  was  so  indignant  that 


ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER.  61 

he  slunk  away.  I  think  some  one  came 
up." 

"That's  the  reason  she  was  indignant,  I 
reckon,"  said  the  major,  dryly. 

Mrs.  Landon,  with  a  woman's  instinct  to 
defend  her  sex,  repudiated  the  idea  warmly. 

Bruce  was  so  astonished  at  the  idea  of 
Pokeberry  Green  being  the  victim  of  the  ten 
der  passion,  that  he  led  the  conversation  off 
to  him,  and  the  major  was  soon  engaged  in 
telling  what  a  turbulent  element  in  the  neigh 
borhood  he  had  become. 

"  He  is  the  greatest  scoundrel  unhung,"  he 
declared  in  conclusion.  "I  am  confident  that 
he  is  a  professional  thief,  and  that  he  fools 
negroes  into  running  away  in  order  to  get  the 
reward  for  them  by  catching  them.  Some 
day  he  will  be  hung.  If  we  had  a  magistrate 
worth  a  button,  we'd  have  been  rid  of  him 
long  ago.  But  what  can  you  do  with  such  a 
fool  as  old  Johnson  ?  Bray  him  in  a  mortar, 
and  he'd  still  be  a  fool." 


CHAPTER   VIII. 

THE  major  informed  Bruce  next  day  that 
he  had  acted  on  his  advice  and  instituted  the 
suit. 

He  told  Mrs.  Landon  in  the  strict  confi 
dence  of  their  chamber  that  Bruce  was  the 
wisest  young  man  he  ever  knew. 

"  He  reminds  me  veiy  much  of  you,"  he 
said  naively.  Mrs.  Landon  repaid  the  compli 
ment  by  declaring  with  equal  sincerity  that 
he  was  veiy  much  like  him. 

An  afternoon  or  two  after  this,  Bruce,  wea 
ried  with  talking  over  and  advising  about  the 
pending  warrant  which  his  father  had  insti 
tuted  against  his  neighbor  for  the  damage  in 
flicted  by  his  cows,  had  taken  a  fishing-rod 
and  sauntered  down  to  the  river.  He  tried 
several  well-remembered  holes,  but  the  fish 
would  not  bite,  and  at  length  he  found  him 
self  wandering  in  a  rather  listless  way  up  the 
bank,  uncertain  whether  to  return  home  or 
not.  Just  where  a  path  went  down  to  the 
62 


ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER.  63 

water's  edge  he  discovered  a  boat  tied  to  a 
small  gum-tree  which  hung  over  the  bank, 
and  he  determined  to  try  the  fishing  on  the 
other  side. 

As  he  paddled  across  the  pond  he  experi 
enced  something  of  the  exhilaration  of  boy 
hood.  He  dipped  his  hand  down  in  the  clear 
water  and  let  it  ripple  against  his  wrist, 
thinking  of  the  old  days  when  he  had  so  often 
done  the  same  thing. 

On  the  other  side  he  tied  his  boat  and 
climbed  the  bank  to  hunt  for  the  old  fishing- 
hole  where  he  had  caught  the  fish  that  after 
noon  so  many  years  ago.  When  he  had 
reached  the  spot  he  found  that  a  tree  had 
fallen  over  the  bank,  and  its  branches  lay  in 
the  water,  destroying  all  chance  of  sport  at 
that  place.  So  he  retraced  his  steps  and 
started  up  the  pond  through  the  woods.  As 
he  proceeded  he  fell  into  the  path  which  led 
around  the  alder  thickets  by  the  old  spring 
at  the  foot  of  the  poplar,  and  a  sudden  thirst 
struck  him  to  drink  from  the  cool  depths 
which  bubbled  from  under  the  great  flat 
rock.  He  followed  the  track,  and  reaching 
the  spring,  flung  his  rod  on  the  ground.  A 
gourd  brown  with  age  and  use  lay  on  the 


64  ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

rock ;  but  under  an  impulse  guided  by  remi 
niscence  he  knelt  down,  and  bending  over, 
drank  from  the  spring  itself.  He  remained 
in  that  attitude  for  some  minutes,  looking 
into  the  clear  dark  depths.  He  was  drinking 
at  the  spring  of  memory. 

How  long  ago  it  all  was ! 

When  he  rose,  he  did  not  leave  the  spot ; 
but  sauntering  to  the  great  poplar,  he  flung 
himself  at  its  foot  and  gave  himself  up  to 
reverie.  The  sky  overhead  was  blue  and 
fleeced  with  long  white  films  of  cloud,  which 
appeared  quite  stationary,  and  the  dark  green 
poplar  boughs  above  him  were  unstirred  by 
any  breeze.  The  faint  melody  of  a  distant 
cow-bell  in  the  marsh  below  him  brought 
back  his  boyhood  and  filled  him  with  drowsy 
content. 

He  was  aroused  by  hearing  a  light  step 
behind  him,  and  he  turned  his  head  and 
looked  around  just  as  the  "  calush "  of  a 
bucket  dipped  into  the  water  reached  him. 

A  slender  young  woman,  dressed  in  a  plain 
light  calico  dress  spotlessly  clean,  was  stoop 
ing  over  the  spring,  holding  her  skirts  back 
with  one  hand,  whilst  with  the  other  she 
lifted  the  dripping  bucket.  Bruce  could  not 


ON  NEWFOUND  1UVEE.  6e5 

see  her  face ;  but  he  knew  she  was  young 
from  the  pliant,  supple  figure,  which  the 
dress  fitted  closely,  the  easy  pose,  the  plump 
arm,  and  the  strong  grasp  of  her  hand  on 
the  bucket  as  she  lifted  it.  A  large,  coarse 
straw  hat  was  on  her  head ;  but  its  plainness 
was  relieved  by  a  loose  twist  of  some  white 
lawny  stuff  around  it,  tied  on  one  side  in  a 
great  bow-knot.  She  lifted  the  bucket,  and 
set  it  on  the  rock.  As  she  did  so,  her  hair, 
suddenly  loosened,  slipped,  and  fell  down  on 
her  shoulders  in  a  rich  crinkling  mass.  She 
removed  her  hat,  and  began  to  coil  her  hair. 
The  curves  and  lines  of  her  figure  were 
clearly  marked,  from  the  small  well-poised 
head,  round  neck,  and  fine  shoulders  to  the 
delicate  ankle.  She  was  as  straight  as  an 
arrow.  Bruce  thought  instinctively  of  a 
Diana  he  had  once  seen.  He  rose  to  his 
feet  and  leaned  against  the  poplar.  The 
slight  noise  he  made  caught  her  ear,  and 
she  turned  quickly,  raising  her  head.  At 
the  sight  of  a  stranger  so  close  to  her,  the 
rich  color  fled  from  her  cheeks,  leaving  them 
a  sudden  white,  and  the  large,  dark  eyes 
widened  with  startled  surprise.  Bruce  rec 
ognized  immediately  the  oval  face,  framed 


66  ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

in  loose  masses  of  dim  gold;  but  he  saw 
that  she  did  not  know  him. 

Instinctively  he  took  off  his  hat,  and  ad 
vanced  with  a  smile,  thinking,  "  By  Jove ! 
how  pretty  she  is  !  " 

"  How  do  you  do  ?  "  he  said. 

She  drew  herself  up  for  a  second,  at  being 
approached  by  a  stranger.  Then  a  look,  at 
first  of  bewilderment,  and  presently  of  pleased 
recognition,  came  over  her  face.  It  was, 
however,  not  unmixed  with  embarrassment; 
for  she  blushed,  and  made  a  hasty  little  up 
ward  movement  of  her  hand,  as  if  to  arrange 
her  collar. 

"  Don't  you  know  me  ?  "  he  said. 

"Yes." 

"  I  have  come  back." 

He  had  the  old  engagement  in  his  mind. 
He  meant  the  speech  to  put  them  on  the  old 
friendly  footing,  for  he  felt  that  it  was  a 
kindness  to  her ;  and  perhaps  both  his  look 
and  voice  showed  it. 

"  You  are  several  years  behind  your  time," 
she  said  calmly. 

"  Yes,  I  am  ;  but  it  was  not  my  fault ;  they 
sent  me  off  to  school." 

He  felt,  as  soon  as  he  had  given  an  excuse, 


ON  NEWFOUND  EIVER.  67 

that  he  had  made  a  mistake,  and  had  lowered 
himself  in  her  eyes. 

She  bowed  with  so  slight  an  inclination 
that  he  almost  hoped  she  had  not  heard  him. 

"  You  have  been  at  school  some  time  ?  " 

It  may  have  been  the  faintest  suggestion 
of  sarcasm  in  her  tone ;  it  may  have  been  the 
slight  curve  in  her  red  lip ;  or  it  may  have 
been  Bruce's  fancy  ;  but  he  felt  himself  flush. 

"I  have  never  been  home  for  any  length 
of  time,"  he  said. 

She  looked  at  him  quietly. 

"  At  least,  in  the  fishing  season,  I  mean ; 
and  this  is  the  first  time  since  that  afternoon 
when  you  were  a  little  girl,  and  came  — 
hunting  for  your  prince."  He  added  the 
last  clause  tentatively. 

"  I  have  grown  wiser  since  then,"  she  said 
quietly. 

"  A  sadder  and  a  wiser  woman  ?  "  he  sug 
gested. 

"No,  not  sadder,  only  wiser.  Only  men 
are  sad  at  gaining  wisdom.  It  brings  women 
peace." 

"  Have  you  never  found  the  prince  ?  " 

"  I  have  never  sought  for  him.  He  does 
not  exist." 


68  ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

Bruce  felt  somehow  a  vague  regret.  He 
had  hoped  she  would  think  of  him  as  she  used 
to  do;  though  he  also  hoped  she  did  not 
divine  his  thoughts.  He  wondered  at  his  em 
barrassment.  He  was  accustomed  to  women, 
especially  young  women ;  and  he  was  accus 
tomed  to  have  them  appreciate  any  attention 
he  might  pay  them.  He  felt  that  this  girl, 
in  her  plain  dress  and  her  coarse  straw  hat, 
was  inferior  to  the  women  he  was  accustomed 
to,  and  to  himself.  It  was,  therefore,  a  strange 
sensation  to  find  himself  wondering  what  she 
thought  of  him,  and  hoping  that  the  result 
was  in  his  favor. 

"  Do  you  know  you  are  very  pretty  ? "  he 
said  suddenly,  breaking  the  ice,  and  throwing 
a  look  of  admiration  into  his  eyes  as  he  moved 
a  step  nearer  to  her.  He  intended  to  catch 
hold  of  her  hand,  and,  perhaps,  on  the  least 
encouragement,  to  kiss  her.  lie  had  often 
tried  the  same  tactics  with  eminent  success. 
He  held  that  every  woman  would  be  pleased 
to  accept  the  incense. 

She  drew  herself  up  slightly,  but  sufficiently 
to  stop  him. 

"  Do  you  know  it  is  a  liberty  to  take  to  say 
that  to  a  woman  unless  you  know  her  well  ?  " 


ON   NEWFOUND  E1VEE.  69 

Her  eyes  flashed,  and  her  lips  were  com 
pressed  with  sudden  resentment. 

Bruce  was  taken  quite  aback. 

"Confound  it!"  he  thought;  "I  wonder  if 
she  really  resents  it.  She  cannot.  It  is  not 
human." 

"It  is  not  usually  considered  a  deadly 
insult,"  he  said,  with  an  attempt  at  a  smile, 
trying  to  cover  his  retreat,  but  feeling  very 
silly. 

"  I  suppose  not  to  the  women  to  whom  you 
are  accustomed  to  saying  it." 

It  put  him  on  the  defensive. 

"No;  I  don't  have  the  provocation  often. 
I  am  accustomed  to  saying  what  I  please,  and 
to  doing  what  I  please,"  he  added,  after  a 
second's  pause,  looking  her  full  in  the  eyes. 

The  girl  drew  herself  up,  and  gave  him  a 
look  of  defiance. 

"  I  have  to  go,"  she  said  quietly,  leaning 
over  and  taking  up  her  hat. 

"Mayn't  I  go  with  you?"  asked  Bruce, 
willing  to  make  amend.  "  Let  me  carry  your 
bucket." 

"  No,  thank  you.     Good  evening." 

She  leaned  over  and  picked  up  her  bucket, 
and  without  deigning  another  glance  walked 


70  ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

slowly  up  the  hill,  her  pliant  figure  swaying  a 
little  to  one  side  under  the  weight  of  the 
bucket. 

Bruce,  leaning  against  the  poplar,  watched 
her  until  she  was  out  of  sight,  and  then  going 
to  his  boat,  crossed  the  pond,  and  went  home. 
As  he  walked  up  the  path  he  had  a  perplexed, 
absent  air,  as  of  a  man  who  had  sustained  a 
loss,  but  who  could  not  tell  just  what. 


CHAPTER  IX. 

BRUCE  took  to  fishing  industriously  after 
this;  and  whether  it  was  that  the  fish  would 
not  bite  on  his  own  side  of  the  pond,  or  what 
ever  the  cause,  he  availed  himself  fully  of 
the  permission  given  so  long  ago  by  the  old 
doctor,  and  every  afternoon  found  him  loung 
ing,  rod  in  hand,  up  the  bank,  or  as  fre 
quently  lying  on  the  ground  by  the  spring 
on  the  doctor's  side  of  the  water. 

It  was  remarkable  how  often  he  became 
thirsty,  and  how  long  a  distance  he  would 
walk  to  drink  at  the  spring  that  bubbled  from 
under  the  rock.  Sometimes  he  spent  the 
whole  afternoon  lounging  in  the  shade  of  the 
great  poplar.  He,  however,  was  not  fortunate 
enough  to  meet  Miss  Reid  again. 

One  afternoon  he  had  been  up  to  the  spring 
as  usual,  and  had  spent  some  time  there  enjoy 
ing  the  quiet  which  was  broken  only  by  the 
crackling  of  leaves,  the  occasional  note  of  a 
bird,  and  the  sound  of  two  cow-bells  far  up 

71 


72  ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

the  pond.  The  bells  had  grown  fainter  and 
fainter,  and  had  finally  ceased.  He  had  saun 
tered  up  the  stream  in  the  opposite  direction 
to  that  he  usually  took.  He  had  with  some 
difficulty  crossed  a  small  creek  which  ran  into 
the  pond,  and  was  making  his  way  along  a 
little  path,  through  the  thick  growth  of  pines, 
gums,  alders,  and  other  bushes,  when  he  was 
almost  startled  to  meet  in  the  narrow  cow- 
track  an  old  negro  woman.  She  was  tall  and 
thin,  and  exceedingly  black;  and  her  short, 
gray  hair  peeped  out  from  under  the  pointed 
white  handkerchief  bound  around  the  top  of 
her  head. 

Bruce  recognized  instantly  the  old  woman 
with  whom  he  had  had  the  interview  years 
ago  on  the  occasion  when  he  had  carried  the 
fish  back  to  Dr.  Browne.  She  had  evidently 
been  walking  rapidly,  for  her  face  was  stream 
ing  with  perspiration.  She  was  startled  at 
meeting  a  stranger  there  in  the  woods ;  but 
Bruce  greeted  her  kindly,  which  seemed  to 
set  her  at  her  case. 

"  You'  sarvent,  marster,"  she  said,  stepping 
out  of  the  path,  and  courtesying  with  a  quaint 
little  bend  at  the  knees. 

Bruce  spoke  to  her  kindly. 


ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER.  73 

"You  ain'  see  nuthin'  o'  no  cows  down 
dat  away,  is  you,  marster?"  she  asked  doubt 
fully. 

"No,  I  have  not,"  said  Bruce.  "I  heard 
the  cow-bells  over  that  way  somewhere,  a 
half-hour  or  more  ago."  He  indicated  the 
direction  in  which  he  was  going.  "Have 
your  cows  bells  on?" 

"Yes,  suh;  bofe  on  'em,"  she  said.  "I 
done  been  up  dat  away,  an'  ain'  see  nuthin' 
on  'em.  I  mightly  feared  dee  done  gone  crost 
de  pawn  an'  git  in  Mr.  Landon's  corn  agin ; 
but  I  ain'  see  whar  dee  cross  nowhar,  up 
dere."  She  stood  still  in  evident  perplexity. 

"How  do  they  get  across?"  asked  Bruce. 

"  I  'clar',  marster,  I  don'  know.  They's  jes' 
natchel  rovers ;  they  git  whar  bud  can't  fly." 

"  Why  do  you  let  them  run  down  here  ?  " 
inquired  Bruce.  "Why  do  you  not  keep 
them  up  ?  " 

"  Well,  to  tell  you  de  truf,  marster,"  said 
the  old  woman,  simply,  "  we  ain'  got  nuthin' 
to  feed  'em  on.  We  'bleeged  to  le'  'em  run 
down  heah.  Dee's  all  de  'pendence  we  got. 
You  see,  ole  marster,  he's  so  ailin'  now  he 
cyarn  git  'bout  to  do  nuthin' ;  an'  Folium  — 
he's  my  ole  man,  —  he  so  cruppled  up  wid 


74  ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

rheumatis,  he  cyarn  hardly  do  nuthin',  an' 
all  he  kin  do  is  to  wait  on  ole  marster,  an' 
help  liim  de  little  bit  he's  able  to  do,  an'  to 
fish.  Sometimes  he  ketch  some  right  smart." 
She  said  this  almost  pathetically.  "An'  de 
cows  an'  de  chickens  is  we  main  dependence." 

Bruce  put  his  hand  into  his  pocket  and 
made  a  mental  estimate  of  the  amount  of 
change  he  found  there. 

"  We  didn't  use  to  have  much  trouble  wid 
'em,"  she  went  on,  "so  long  as  dee  had  plenty 
o'  grass  on  dis  side ;  but  now  dee  done  fine  de 
way  'cross  we  have  to  watch  'em  study  all  de 
time.  We  do  right  well  as  long  as  my  young 
mistis  or  I  one  kin  watch  'em  ;  but  ef  we  teck 
our  eye  off  'em  now,  dee  gone." 

Bruce  was  all  attention  now,  and  the  old 
woman,  with  feminine  instinct  recognizing 
his  sympathy,  was  glad  to  relieve  her  troubles 
by  imparting  them  to  another. 

"  Dee  got  'way  de  other  day  when  ole 
marster  was  so  po'ly,  and  got  into  Mr.  Lan- 
don's  corn  over  yonder,  —  right  over  cross  de 
pawn,"  she  pointed,  "an'  he  meek  de  over 
seer  drive  'em  up,  an'  put  'em  in  he  lot.  I 
had  to  go  over  dere  after  'em.  He  overseer 
didn't  warn'  le'  me  have  'em  at  fust.  Teensey 


ON  NEWFOUND   EIVER.  75 

she  went  back  right  smart,  an'  Princess  she 
gone  back  a  heap,  —  from  not  being  milked 
reg'lar,  you  know,"  she  explained. 

Bruce  nodded. 

"  But  I  so  glad  to  fine  'em  an'  git  'em  back 
agin,  I  ain'  mine  nuthin'.  At  fust,  I  begin  to 
think  I  ain'  gwine  git  'em  no  mo'  de  way 
dat  man  talk ;  but  I  promise  him  faithful  I 
wouldn't  le'  'em  git  in  de  corn  no  mo',  an' 
den  he  le'  me  bring  'em  long,  an'  he  suin'  ole 
marster  'bout  de  corn.  De  man  come  heah 
one  day  las'  week  an'  gi'  him  de  paper." 

She  turned,  preparatory  to  continuing  her 
search. 

"  Wait  a  minute,"  said  Bruce.  He  paused 
irresolutely.  "  How  do  you  live  ?  "  he  asked 
abruptly. 

"  Well,  we  got  some  chickens,  an'  we  sell 
de  aigs  an'  de  butter,"  she  explained,  "an' 
sometimes  we  ketch  some  fish." 

"  Here,  let  me  give  you  something,"  said 
Bruce.  He  raked  up  all  the  change  in  his 
pocket,  and  handed  it  to  her,  half  shame 
facedly. 

Her  thanks  were  mute  astonishment.  She 
looked  first  at  him,  and  then  at  her  hand,  full 
of  the  silver  he  had  given  her,  and  which  she 


76  ON  NEWFOUND  E1VER. 

held  out  half-way  to  him,  as  if  not  certain 
that  he  had  not  made  a  mistake. 

"  Come  on  ;  I  will  help  yon  find  your  cows," 
he  said.  "  You  go  that  Avay,  and  I  will  go 
this,"  and  he  plunged  ahead  through  the 
bushes. 

He  found  in  the  search  a  new  pleasure.  It 
brought  back  the  zest  of  his  boyhood ;  and 
he  went  in  and  out  along  the  edge  of  the 
pond,  examining  carefully  every  place  where 
the  cows  could  have  gone  down  to  the  water. 
At  last  he  came  on  their  tracks,  and  follow 
ing  them,  found  that  the  cows  had  gone  up 
around  the  pond,  and  had  crossed  over  near 
its  head,  where  the  water  was  shallow.  A 
less  keen  eye  might  have  missed  the  trail. 
The  difficulty  of  getting  over  was  considera 
ble  ;  but  a  faint  jangle  of  bells  reached  him 
from  the  other  bank.  The  cows  were  evi 
dently  in  the  cornfield,  on  the  opposite  side. 

As  Bruce  had  pledged  himself,  there  was 
no  help  for  it;  so,  after  going  up  a  little 
higher,  he  was  able  to  get  across,  though  not 
without  difficulty.  The  cows  were  found; 
and  after  an  exciting  chase  through  the  corn, 
in  which  a  great  deal  of  grain  was  trampled 
down,  Bruce  got  them  to  the  point  where 


ON  NEWFOUND  EIVEE.  77 

they  had  crossed,  and  drove  them  back.  He 
was  walking  carefully  on  the  hummocks,  and 
was  nearly  over,  when  his  foot  slipped,  and 
he  went  down  into  the  water  to  his  waist. 
He  gave  expression  to  an  objurgation  at  the 
cows,  and  climbed  out,  dripping.  Just  then, 
looking  up,  right  before  him  on  the  bank 
stood  the  young  girl  he  had  met  before.  A 
distressed  expression  was  on  her  face. 

"How  do  you  do?"  said  Bruce,  feeling 
that  he  must  cut  a  sorry  figure. 

"  Did  they  get  into  your  corn  again  ?  "  she 
asked.  "  I  am  so  dreadfully  sorry.  We  will 
keep  them  up  hereafter." 

"No,  you  will  not,"  said  Bruce,  almost 
roughly. 

She  misinterpreted  his  reply.  "  Indeed,  I 
will ;  it  was  an  entire  accident  that  they  got 
away  to-day.  My  grandfather  was  sick,  and 
I  just  — " 

"I  don't  care  anything  about  that,"  said 
Bruce. 

She  misunderstood  him ;  but  he  proceeded. 

"I  promised  your  old  woman  to  find  her 
cows  for  her,  and  as  they  set  the  fashion  of 
wading,  I  had  to  follow  it." 

She  said  "  Thank  you  "  so  cordially,  and 


78  ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

added,  "  I'm  so  afraid  that  you  will  catch 
cold,"  so  solicitously,  that  Bruce  forgot  his 
unpresentable  appearance,  and  said : 

"I  don't  mind  it  the  least  bit.  When  I 
was  a  boy  I  used  to  know  every  foot  of  the 
pond,  and  I  have  hunted  often,  wet  to  the 
skin,  almost  for  days  at  a  time."  He  was 
after  gaining  time.  To  have  her  leave  him 
suddenly  looked  like  putting  out  the  sun. 
To  gain  a  respite  he  would  promptly  have 
changed  his  tone,  and  have  avowed  himself 
ready  to  die  with  cold.  She  started  up  the 
path,  and  allowed  him,  without  anything  be 
ing  said  about  it,  to  walk  with  her  down 
the  pond,  taking  the  easy  pace  at  which  the 
two  cows  lazily  sauntered  homewards  along 
the  narrow  path,  one  behind  the  other,  stop 
ping  now  and  then  to  browse  the  grass  or 
young  bushes  beside  the  way. 

Before  the  walk  was  over,  they  were  on 
terms  of  confidence.  Bruce  had  forgotten  the 
difference  in  their  stations.  She  told  him  of 
her  fondness  for  the  woods,  and  of  how,  as  a 
girl,  she  used  to  know  every  path  in  the 
pines,  and  every  nook  on  the  pond. 

"  I  used  to  like  to  fish,"  she  said ;  "  but  I 
don't  love  my  frogs,  and  I  cannot  handle 


ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER.  79 

them  as  if  I  did.  I  cannot  bear  to  see  the 
poor  fish  struggling  and  gasping  for  breath. 
Besides  that,  there  is  a  dreadful  man  who 
comes  down  here  sometimes  and  frightens 
me.  He  seems  to  haunt  the  place,"  she  ex 
plained.  She  had  met  him  once  or  twice. 
He  had  once  stopped  her,  and  attempted 
to  detain  her  in  conversation.  She  described 
him :  "  He  has  a  great  purplish  mark  across 
his  throat,  and  looks  brutal  and  dangerous. 
He  always  carries  a  gun." 

Bruce  had  no  difficulty  in  recognizing 
Pokeberry.  As  she  lifted  her  eyes  with  the 
timid  expression  in  them,  born  of  the  recol 
lection  of  the  interview,  he  was  filled  with  a 
sudden  desire  to  throttle  the  brute  who  dared 
to  frighten  her. 

Nothing  arouses  a  man's  tenderness  so 
surely  as  a  woman's  exhibiting  fear,  and  yet 
silently  confiding  in  his  protection. 

"I  will  see  that  you  are  not  molested 
further,"  said  Bruce,  quietly. 

"  Oh  you  must  not  say  anything  to  him. 
Please  don't,"  she  said  quickly,  stopping  and 
making  an  earnest  little  gesture  of  entreaty 
towards  him.  "  He  always  carries  a  gun, 
and  I'm  so  afraid  he  would  shoot  you."  She 


80  ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

looked  at  him  with  anxious,  uplifted,  large 
eyes. 

"  I  will  take  care  that  he  doesn't  do  that," 
said  Bruce. 

"I  admire  courage  more  than  anything  in 
the  world,"  she  said  naively.  "I  suppose  it 
is  because  I  am  so  afraid  of  everything  my 
self.  I  remember  I  used  as  a  child  to  make 
myself  perform  things  that  I  was  afraid  of, 
just  to  have  the  sense  of  overcoming  my 
fear." 

Bruce,  with  a  look  of  admiration  in  his 
eyes,  asked  what  sort  of  things  she  referred 
to. 

44  Why,  I  remember  once  making  myself 
go  to  the  old  graveyard  in  the  dark.  I  was 
dreadfully  afraid  of  the  dark.  I  was  in  a 
terrible  fright.  Ugh!"  She  gave  a  little 
shiver  at  the  recollection.  "  The  grape-vines 
hanging  down  from  the  old  trees  were  in  the 
dark  all  like  snakes.  They  just  crawled,  and 
made  a  noise.  Of  course  it  was  only  the 
leaves  rustling,  but  I  was  such  a  coward  I 
nearly  fainted.  It  was  so  creepy." 

Bruce  had  a  look  in  his  eyes  which  showed 
what  he  thought  of  such  cowardice.  He  for 
the  first  time  noted  the  lirm  lines  about  her 


02V  NEWFOUND  ElVER.  81 

mouth  and  chin.  Somehow,  they  reminded 
him  of  his  father.  He  said  to  her  : 

"  Did  you  ever  hear  of  Marshal  Turenne 
saying  of  his  knees,  which  were  trembling 
as  he  mounted  his  horse  to  command  in 
a  great  battle,  that  if  they  knew  where 
he  was  going  to  take  them  that  day  they 
would  shake  more  than  they  were  shaking 
then?" 

"Oh!  it  was  not  courage  in  me,"  she 
smiled ;  "  it  was  nothing  but  pride.  I  was 
always  proud  enough  ;  in  fact,  it  is  one  of  my 
deadly  sins,  —  at  least,  so  grandpapa  always 
says.  Mammy  used  to  call  it  obstinacy.  I 
remember  once,  as  a  child,  actually  starving 
myself  as  a  practice,  because  Katherine  was 
starved  into  submission  by  Petruchio.  I 
wanted  to  be  able,  by  practice,  to  meet  my 
Petruchio  when  he  should  come.  Wasn't 
it  silly  ?  I  kept  it  up  till  I  got  really  sick. 
Then  grandpapa  gave  me  some  dreadful  stuff 
to  take.  That  cured  me.  No  Petruchio  ever 
came  ;  but  had  he  done  so,  he  would  not  have 
conquered  me  by  starvation.  Grandpapa  says 
I  got  it  from  him.  But  his  pride  is  noble.  I 
have  seen  him  endure  torture  without  a  groan. 
You  do  not  know  how  brave  he  is.  He  is 


82  O^Y   NEWFOUND  H1VER. 

almost  blind,  and  will  soon  be  quite  so  ;  yet 
he  never  says  a  word  of  it." 

There  was  a  look  of  softness  in  her  face  as 
she  spoke  of  her  grandfather,  which,  follow 
ing  the  expression  of  determination  that  it 
had  borne  just  before,  made  her  more  beauti 
ful  than  ever.  Bruce  Landon  looked  at  her 
with  new  interest.  He  had  never  met  any 
one  just  like  this  until  now.  He  had  never 
taken  in  her  full  beauty  before.  He  was 
conscious  that  he  had  suddenly  grown  bash 
ful.  He  hardly  dared  to  touch  her  hand  as 
he  helped  her  over  a  fallen  tree  across  the 
path.  Her  warm  touch  thrilled  him  as  her 
hand  lay  in  his.  He  had  never  noticed  before 
what  a  delicate  shapely  hand  she  had ;  the 
fingers  long  and  tapering,  the  wrist  so  small, 
the  skin  so  fine.  He  was  overcome  with  a 
sudden  sense  of  her  beauty  ;  her  pliant  figure, 
her  white  throat,  the  curves  of  her  cheek  and 
chin,  the  delicate,  rich  mouth,  the  white 
teeth,  -the  fine  nose,  the  changing  color,  the 
large,  lustrous,  sweet  eyes,  —  they  entranced 
him,  made  his  heart  beat. 

"You  must  go  back  now,"  she  said  gently, 
as  they  neared  the  top  of  the  hill.  "  I  have 
to  make  a  cup  of  tea  for  my  grandfather.  1 


ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER.  83 

have  no  doubt  he  has.  been  expecting  me  for 
a  half-hour." 

"  Cannot  I  go  with  you  ?  "  Bruce  found 
courage  to  ask.  "  I  should  like  very  much 
to  meet  him.  I  did  once,  as  a  boy." 

"  No ;  he  never  sees  visitors,"  she  said  sim 
ply,  with  a  little  smile.  "  He  is  a  great  in 
valid.  Good  by."  She  held  out  her  hand. 

He  took  it  and  pressed  it. 

«  Good  by." 


CHAPTER  X. 

MARGARET  passed  quite  through  the  pines, 
and  reached  the  opening  beyond  which  was 
what  was  once  the  yard,  but  was  now  simply 
a  tangle  of  bushes  and  briars.  Instead  of 
going  on  to  the  house,  she  passed  along  the 
path  to  an  outhouse  on  the  side  of  the  yard, 
and  went  in.  A  moment  later  she  came  out, 
and  going  over  to  a  little  wood-pile,  began  to 
pick  up  some  chips. 

It  was  perhaps  a  quarter  of  an  hour  after 
wards  that  she  left  the  old  kitchen,  and 
passed  along  to  the  house  with  a  waiter 
covered  with  a  napkin,  on  which  were  an 
old-fashioned  teapot  and  cream-jug,  and  a 
cup  and  saucer  of  old  blue  china. 

As  she  entered  the  house,  a  high,  queru 
lous  voice  sounded  from  an  inner  room, 

"Margaret!  Margaret!  Margaret!" 

"  Yes,  grandpapa,  I'm  coming,"  she  called, 
quickening  her  step,  and  opening  a  door  on 
the  left  of  the  long  passage. 
84 


ON  NEWFOUND  EIVEE.  85 

The  room  she  entered  was  furnished  as  a 
bedroom.  The  few  articles  of  furniture, 
though  old  and  worn,  were  of  handsomer 
workmanship  than  anything  about  the  place 
would  have  prepared  one  to  expect.  A  high 
and  old,  massive  carved  mahogany  bedstead, 
with  tall  tester  reaching  up  to  the  top  of  the 
low-pitched  room,  took  up  half  of  one  side  of 
the  apartment ;  and  the  two  or  three  straight- 
backed  chairs  and  the  legs  of  the  round  table 
were  carved  with  an  elaborateness  which  told 
of  a  former  age. 

By  the  open  window,  propped  up  with  pil 
lows,  in  an  armchair  sat  an  old  man,  whose 
black,  deep-set  eyes,  gleaming  from  beneath 
his  shaggy  white  brows,  gave  the  only  sug 
gestion  of  color  in  his  pallid  face.  The  thin 
sharp  face,  the  keen  aquiline  nose,  the  stern 
pose  of  the  white  head,  and  the  restless  deep 
eyes  gave  the  invalid  a  resemblance  to  an  old 
gray  eagle,  which  was  not  diminished  by  the 
long,  thin  hands,  which,  as  Margaret  entered, 
clutched  the  arms  of  his  chair  nervously,  as 
he  faced  the  door. 

"Well,  where  have  you  been?"  he  de 
manded,  as  the  girl  entered  the  room.  "Here 
I  have  been  shouting  myself  hoarse  for  two 
hours." 


86  ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

His  granddaughter,  before  she  answered, 
crossed  the  room,  and  placed  the  waiter  on 
the  small  table.  Then  she  approached  the 
invalid,  and  proceeded  deftly  to  arrange  his 
pillows.  There  was  a  little  flush  on  her  face 
as  she  met  the  keen  eyes. 

"  Where  have  I  been  ?  "  she  smiled,  as  she 
smoothed  the  creases  and  patted  the  white 
napkin.  "Well,  I  have  been  rubbing  my 
lamp,  and  demanding  a  spring  that  bubbles 
up  hot  tea,  and  I  have  been  getting  a  pitcher 
of  cream  from  the  cow  that  jumped  over  the 
moon,  —  and  all  for  the  most  spoilt  baby  that 
ever  cried  4two  hours'  on  a  stretch,  —  and 
here  they  are." 

She  stooped  over,  and  kissed  the  old  man 
tenderly  on  the  forehead.  As  she  turned 
away  to  bring  the  table  closer,  the  expression 
on  the  invalid's  face  changed,  and  the  hawk 
eyes  followed  her  with  a  new  tenderness. 

"  Ah  yes,  you  are  a  dear  little  fairy,"  he 
said,  "  and  I  am  an  old  tyrant." 

"  Oh  no !  you  are  not ;  you  shall  not  say 
such  things  of  yourself.  You  are  my  dear 
old  grandpapa."  She  kissed  him  again. 

"  I  am  the  worst  enemy  you  ever  had  on 
earth,"  said  the  old  man,  bitterly. 


ON  NEWFOUND  EIVEE.  87 

"  You  are  nothing  of  the  kind,  and  you  are 
not  to  talk  that  way.  It  always  excites  and 
fatigues  you,  and  you  must  stop  it.  You 
know  that  you  promised  me  never  to  speak 
that  way.  Here,  your  tea  is  getting  cold. 
No ;  you  must  drink  it  at  once." 

She  held  the  cup  to  him  with  a  pretty 
authority,  and  the  old  man  accepted  it. 

Bruce  walked  home  like  a  man  in  a  trance. 
He  was  divided  between  his  recollection  of 
Margaret  Reid  and  his  determination  to 
persuade  his  father  to  dismiss  his  warrant. 
When,  however,  he  reached  the  house,  he 
found  his  father  seated  on  the  porch,  in  a  state 
of  high  indignation.  He  was  indulging  in  a 
philippic  against  his  neighbor  across  the  river. 

"  Why,  sir,"  he  said,  taking  Bruce  into  his 
audience  in  the  middle  of  a  sentence ;  "  why, 
sir,  he  has  turned  his  cows  into  my  cornfield 
again  !  Right  on  the  eve  of  the  warrant ! 
He's  simply  flouting  me  !  " 

Bruce  declared  that  it  was  impossible. 

"  Impossible  !  I  tell  you  that  it  is  so.  I 
heard  the  cow-bells  myself  down  there  in  my 
field ;  and  when  my  overseer  went  down  there, 
he  found  where  they  had  been  chasing  around, 
trampling  down  my  best  corn.  He  saw  the 


88  O.V  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

track  of  the  man  that  was  with  them.   I  believe 
he  comes  over  and  cuts  the  corn  regularly." 

"Well,  the  man  was  driving  them  out," 
said  Bruce. 

"No  such  thing.  Bailiff  says  he  saw  where 
he  came  up  from  the  water." 

"Well,  I  know  he  was,"  asserted  Bruce; 
"  for  I  drove  them  out  myself." 

"  Ah,  you  were  acting  as  cowherd  for  old 
Browne  ?  —  or  perhaps  it  was  his  daughter  ?  " 
said  his  father,  with  that  dry,  acrid  tone 
which  burned  like  a  hot  iron. 

The  young  man  winced.  He  set  his  teeth 
hard  together. 

"  I  hope  that  you  will  pasture  them  some 
where  else  hereafter  except  in  my  best  corn," 
said  his  father. 

"  I  am  not  his  cowherd,"  said  Bruce ;  "  but 
perhaps  if  you  would  keep  up  your  fences, 
you  would  not  have  to  lay  the  blame  on  your 
neighbors." 

"  You  had  better  appear  at  the  trial,  and  air 
your  views  there.  They  may  be  deemed  of 
more  value  by  the  magistrate  than  I  consider 
them.  He  is  a  fool.  If  he  hadn't  been,  I'd  have 
brought  the  warrant  years  ago." 

It  was  the  old  gentleman's  manner,  not  his 
words,  which  cut. 


ON  NEWFOUND  EIVEE.  89 

Bruce  remembered  his  own  advice  to  him 
to  bring  the  warrant. 

"  I  shall  not  go  to  the  trial  at  all,"  he  said. 

"  Ah !  you  will  not  ?  You  will  do  me  the 
favor  to  remain  neutral  ?  Thank  you." 

The  major's  fine  nose  looked  even  thinner 
than  ever,  and  the  nostrils  dilated. 

Bruce  had  never  been  so  patient  before.  He 
thought  of  the  picture  the  old  negro  woman 
had  drawn  of  their  poverty,  and  it  brought 
him  self-control. 

"They  are  very  poor—  '  he  began,  and 
paused.  "If  you  knew  how  poor  they  are, 
you  would  not  be  so  hard  on  them,"  he  broke 
out  suddenly. 

The  major  never  intended  to  be  hard  on 
any  one  ;  but  he  was  thoroughly  angry  now, 
and  was  blind  to  everything. 

"  You  have  been  investigating  the  matter, 
and  sitting  in  judgment  on  me  ?  You  had  bet 
ter  go  and  ask  Johnson  to  let  you  try  the  case. 
He  usually  makes  up  his  mind  before  he  hears 
any  evidence,  and  you  would  be  a  very  good 
associate  for  him.  I  don't  know  how  poor  your 
prote*g£  is ;  but  he  ought  to  be  rich,  as  he  has 
been  fattening  his  cattle  in  my  corn  so  long." 

He  rose  and  marched  into  the  house. 


CHAPTER   XI. 

THE  warrant  brought  by  the  major  against 
the  old  "doctor  "  was  the  absorbing  topic  on 
Newfound.  Other  men  had  brought  warrants. 
Indeed,  Squire  Johnson  sat  monthly  on  the 
fourth  Saturday  in  every  month,  at  Jones's 
Crossroads,  and  dispensed  justice  among  the 
neighbors,  at  an  average  of  one  dollar  a  case. 
But  the  major  had  never  gone  to  law  before. 
He  had  always  boasted  that  he  had  never  had 
a  suit  in  his  life.  His  neighbor's  cows  had 
been  running  on  him  for  years,  and  he  had 
contented  himself  with  growling  about  it,  or, 
when  he  was  particularly  exasperated,  with 
threatening  to  sue  for  damages.  He  had 
never  carried  the  threat  into  execution  :  some 
said,  only  because  Squire  Johnson  was  magis 
trate,  whilst  others  ascribed  it  to  a  better 
motive. 

At  any  rate,  now,  after  a  long  waiting,  the 
major,  who  had  for  twenty  years  scouted  the 
justice,  and  ridiculed  with  his  biting  speeches 
90 


ON  NEWFOUND   RIVER.  91 

the  pitiful  dissensions  of  his  neighbors,  had 
broken  his  boasted  record  and  had  gone  to 
law  himself. 

"  Yes ;  I'm  a  fool,  too,"  he  admitted  caus 
tically  to  one  of  his  friends  who  rallied  him 
on  his  taking  the  step  of  an  appeal  to  law 
after  having  so  often  inveighed  against  it. 
"  Yes  ;  I'm  a  fool  like  the  rest.  But  if  I  re 
main  so  different  from  my  neighbors,  they  all 
impose  on  me  and  eat  me  up." 

On  the  morning  of  the  trial  Bruce  Lan- 
don  and  his  father  met  at  breakfast.  The 
major's  face  was  unusually  grim,  and  the  look 
in  his  deep-set  eyes,  and  the  expression  on 
his  thin,  clean-shaven  lip,  were  not  auspicious 
of  peace.  He  was  evidently  girded  up  for 
battle.  Bruce  also  was  prepared  for  what 
ever  might  happen.  His  morning  greeting, 
as  he  entered  the  long  breakfast-roon^,  was 
suspiciously  polite ;  but  his  face  was  set  with 
a  look  of  defiance,  and  everv  movement  was 
a  declaration  of  resistance.  The  meal,  how 
ever,  passed  off  without  an  outbreak  ;  indeed, 
almost  in  silence.  The  major,  having  finished, 
rose  and  marched  out  of  the  room,  shutting 
the  door  behind  him  with  a  slam.  He  might 
have  been  heard  walking  backwards  and  for- 


92  ON  NEWFOUND  E1VEE. 

wards  with  a  sharp,  quick  step  from  one  room 
to  another,  as  he  made  his  preparations  to  set 
out,  and  when  he  left  the  house  his  tread 
was  that  of  a  grenadier.  He  carried  in  one 
hand  a  heavy  riding-whip,  and  in  the  other 
an  old  law-hook  which  he  had  heen  studying 
assiduously  for  several  days,  and  which  had 
the  leaves  turned  down  in  many  places.  At 
the  rack  he  gave  the  volume  to  a  negro  boy, 
and  calling  to  another  to  tell  Mr.  Bailiff  he 
had  gone,  he  mounted  his  horse  and  rode  away. 

Bruce  spent  the  morning  in  lounging  list 
lessly  about  the  house.  He  tried  reading, 
writing,  and  several  other  things ;  but  his 
favorite  authors  palled  on  him,  and  his  pen 
refused  to  finish  the  sentence  he  begun.  He 
saw  nothing  but  Margaret  Reid,  heard  noth 
ing  but  her  voice.  At  last,  about  midday, 
he  took  his  fishing-tackle  and  strolled  down 
towards  the  pond. 

The  little  yard  at  Jones's  Crossroads  was 
quite  full  an  hour  before  the  time  set  for  the 
hearing.  The  neighborhood  had  turned  out, 
and  the  little  store  did  a  thriving  business  in 
calico,  nails,  and  whiskey. 

The  first  person  to  arrive  connected  with 
the  case  was  Hall  the  constable.  He  was 


ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER.  93 

watched  with  great  interest  as  he  tied  his 
horse  to  the  fence,  and  took  off  with  exag 
gerated  deliberation  his  saddle-bags.  They 
were  known  to  contain  his  official  papers, 
and  were  watched  with  expectation  approach 
ing  to  awe  by  the  crowd  in  the  little  yard 
across  the  road.  They  insensibly  lowered 
their  voices,  and  gazed  at  the  officer  as  if 
they  expected  some  kind  of  animal  to  jump 
out  of  his  leather  pockets.  He  entered  the 
little  yard,  greeting  every  one  he  met  with 
that  exaggerated  cordiality  and  condescension 
which  usually  appertains  to  public  office.  A 
group  immediately  surrounded  him,  to  whom 
he  began  to  tell  of  his  visit  to  Dr.  Browne's. 

"I  was  just  about  to  pin  the  summons  on 
the  do'  and  come  away,"  he  said,  uwhen 
roun'  the  house  there  came  the  pretties' 
young  lady  that  my  eyes  ever  see,  or  ever 
expec'  to  see."  He  took  out  a  bundle  of 
papers,  and  resting  his  finger  on  it,  contin 
ued  :  "  I  have  done  made  the  return  on  thar 
that  I  explained  the  nature  of  the  summons 
to  her,  and  that  she  was  over  sixteen;  but 
the  fact  is  I  didn't  do  much  explainment, 
and  the  Lord  knows  I  don't  know  whether 
she's  sixteen  or  not.  I  know  I'd  ruther  fling 


94  ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

up  the  orfis  than  'a'  axed  her.  But  I  jes' 
'lowed  she  couldn'  'a'  growed  all  that  pretty 
in  less  than  sixteen  years,  that's  all.  Don't 
you  think  I  am  right,  Sam?" 

As  Hall  was  a  widower  of  some  months' 
standing,  this  reasoning  struck  his  audience 
as  irresistible. 

"  Talk  about  Pokeberry?  why,  she  wouldn' 
look  at  him  'cept  to  kick  him  out  of  her  way," 
he  said,  as  a  stout,  heavy  man  approached  the 
group.  His  face  was  a  deeper  red  than  that 
of  even  the  sunburned  men  about  him.  His 
eyes  were  bloodshot,  and  his  gait  was  slightly 
unsteady.  He  caught  the  closing  part  of  the 
constable's  speech,  and  gave  a  harsh,  grating 
laugh,  which  he  followed  with  a  storm  of 
oaths.  One  of  the  little  hounds  at  his  heel 
was  so  unfortunate  as  to  get  in  his  way ;  he 
gave  the  beast  a  savage  kick  which  sent  it 
off  yelping  with  pain. 

"Pokeberry,  you  agree  with  me,  I  know?" 
said  the  constable ;  at  which  sally  there  was  a 
general  laugh.  A  violent  outburst  of  oaths 
was  his  answer. 

"  All  I  want  to  do  is  to  git  my  chance  at 
'em.  I  never  missed  gittin'  even  yet,  when  I 
laid  my  mind  to  it." 


ON  NEWFOUND  EIVEE.  95 

"  Sometimes  you  gits  rather  ahead  of  'em, 
I  expect,"  said  Hall. 

"I  b'lieve  the  major  bring  that  warrant 
more  to  git  a  sight  at  them  folks  '11  anything 
else,"  declared  one  of  the  party,  meaning  to 
change  the  subject.  "  He  ain'  keering  nothin' 
about  the  little  cawn  them  cows  eat." 

"  He's  another  one  I'll  git  even  with," 
growled  Pokeberry,  steadying  himself  against 
a  tree. 

"  Whyn't  you  say  that  to  him  ? "  asked 
Hall.  A  guffaw  greeted  the  thrust,  and  Poke- 
berry  turned  scowling  away. 

"  What's  a  little  cawn  to  a  man  who's  got 
them  flats?"  pursued  the  first  speaker,  not 
heeding  the  interruption.  "If  I  had  them 
cawnfiel's,  I'd  want  cows  to  git  in  thar  some 
times,  jes'  to  let  me  see  that  I  didii'  feel  it." 

"  He  ain'  keerin'  'bout  the  cawn  so  much  as 
'bout  the  old  doctor  lettiii'  his  cows  keep  on 
gittin'  on  him,"  explained  the  constable,  in 
the  authoritative  tone  of  one  who,  holding  a 
public  office,  is  presumed  to  know  whatever 
is  necessary  on  every  subject. 

"That's  so,"  chimed  in  a  tall,  thin,  con 
sumptive-looking  man  with  a  red  beard,  whose 
name  was  Hackett.  "  He  don'  want  cows  nor 


96  ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

nothin'  else  runnin'  over  him,  an'  he  ain'  gwine 
have  it." 

"No,  that  he  ain',"  asserted  Mills.  "And 
he  jes'  as  live  have  things  runnin'  over  him 
as  over  that  Ian'.  He  thinks  as  much  o'  that 
Ian'  o'  hisn  as  if  it  was  a  gold  mine.  They 
ain'  a  acre  on  the  place  he  don'  think  much 
of  as  if  it  was  pu'  low  ground.  He's  always 
talking  'bout  it,  an'  spendin'  money  on  it. 
Why,  he's  spent  money  enough  on  that  place 
to  buy  three  plantations.  He's  takin'  keer  of 
it  for  Bruce."  The  tone  was  dry.  He  was 
stating  the  fact  with  the  air  of  a  man  who 
did  not  suppose  any  one  would  question  it. 

"  I  wonder  what  he'd  'a'  done  if  his  brother 
had  'a'  lived  to  divide  the  place  with  him  ?  " 
said  one  of  the  crowd.  "I  b'lieve  'twould  kill 
him  to  give  up  a  acre  of  that  land." 

"  I  b'lieve  'twould,"  assented  Mills.  "  He's 
always  talkin'  about  keepin'  it  in  trust  for 
Bruce." 

"  Bruce  is  come  home,  I've  heerd,  and  th' 
say  he's  mighty  fine  and  assumptions,"  one  of 
the  others  remarked. 

"  He's  a  mighty  nice  boy,"  said  Mills.  "  In 
course,  he's  kind  o'  curried  up,  but  he  don' 
put  on  no  airs.  He's  all  right." 


ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER.  97 

Pokeberry  had  returned  to  the  group. 

"D — n  him,  too!  He's  another  one,"  he 
said. 

"  Why,  you  seem  to  be  after  them  all  to 
day,"  laughed  Hall. 

" I'm  after  him"  said  Pokeberry,  angrily. 

"  You  better  keep  some  distance  after  him, 
too,"  said  Mills.  "  You  remember  that  hand 
spike  he  hit  you  with  when  he  wasn't  nothin' 
but  a  boy  ?  Well,  if  he  hits  you  now,  you'll 
think  a  mule's  kicked  you." 

Pokeberry  swore  inarticulately. 

"  I  wonder  if  he  an'  the  old  major  sets 
horses  any  better  than  they  used  to  ? "  Hall 
asked  generally. 

"  Oh  yes !  the  major  thinks  all  the  worl' 
of  him,"  replied  Mills.  "  He's  talkin'  about 
puttin'  him  in  charge,  and  turnin'  over 
ev'y thing  right  to  him.  They  say  he's  goin' 
to  marry  a  furreign  lady,  mighty  fine  an' 
rich.  I  didn't  hear  the  major  say  so,"  he 
explained. 

"  I  heard  that  Bruce  was  gwine  to  manage 
the  case  for  his  pa  to-day?"  said  Hall.  The 
faint  interrogation  in  his  tone  justified  Mills 
in  giving  evidence  of  his  acquaintance  with 
the  affairs  of  his  friend. 


98  ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

"  He  is,"  he  said,  nodding  his  head  senten- 
tiously.  "  He  made  him  bring  it." 

The  arrival  of  the  magistrate,  who  was  to 
try  the  case,  turned  the  discussion  into  a  new 
channel.  It  was  Squire  Johnson.  The  group 
watched  the  old  man  intently  as  he  came 
around  to  the  gate  with  his  book  —  "  Mayo's 
Guide  "  —  under  his  arm. 

"  He's  got  his  chance  now  about  which  he 
was  talkin'  eight  or  ten  years  ago,  that  evenin' 
you  and  me  was  here  devilin'  him,"  said  Mills 
in  an  undertone  to  Hall. 

The  constable's  mouth  was  full  of  tobacco. 
He  waited  a  moment,  then  turned  the  quid 
in  his  mouth. 

The  old  man  bustled  about  with  amusing 
self-importance,  arranging  his  table  under  a 
tree,  and  laying  out  his  book  and  papers  ;  but 
no  one  paid  any  attention  to  him,  for  the  in 
terest  of  the  crowd  was  suddenly  centred  on 
a  small  black  negro,  who  at  this  moment  was 
coming  up  the  sandy  road  at  a  slow,  limping 
gait.  He  was  not  above  five  feet  tall,  and  he 
wore  a  beaver  hat  of  a  style  long  obsolete, 
set  on  the  back  of  his  gray  head.  As  he 
reached  the  outskirts  of  the  crowd  he  paused, 
and  took  off  his  hat  deferentially. 


ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER.  99 

"  Sarvent,  marsters,"  he  said,  with  a  low, 
sweeping  salaam  to  the  crowd.  The  gesture 
had  an  apparent  effect ;  for  a  dozen  men  near 
him  returned  the  greeting,  and  the  general 
manner  towards  him  was  one  of  kindness. 

"  Gent'men,  ken  you  have  the  civility  to 
show  me  which  are  the  jestice?"  he  inquired 
with  a  Chesterfieldian  air. 

This  inquiry  immediately  directed  attention 
to  that  functionary,  who  came  through  the 
opening  which  the  crowd  instinctively  made. 

The  old  negro  advanced. 

"  Jestice,"  he  said,  by  way  of  salutation, 
with  another  of  his  profound  bows  to  the 
portly  magistrate ;  and  then,  after  some 
search,  took  a  letter  from  the  lining  of  his 
old  hat.  He  advanced  a  step. 

"My  marster  have  direct  me  to  renounce 
that  he  have  the  honor  to  present  you  a 
letter." 

He  advanced  and  delivered  the  missive  to 
the  magistrate,  whose  assumed  dignity  in  the 
presence  of  the  perfectly  natural  and  real 
dignity  of  the  little  negro  sank  at  once  to 
the  point  of  a  manifest  counterfeit. 

The  pause  in  which  the  squire  with  awk 
ward  fingers  was  handling  the  note,  was 


100  ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

broken  by  some  one  inquiring  of  the  negro 
as  to  the  health  of  his  master. 

"I  thank  you,  marster,  not  so  very  well. 
He's  most  in  general  uncommon  indisposed. 
He  find  it  impossible  to  repear  himself  on 
this  recasion.  An'  he  reques'  me  to  meek 
his  ixcuses  to  you  gent'men  on  that  recount." 

This  excessive  mark  of  his  master's  esteem 
was  accepted  by  the  crowd  with  due  dignity. 
The  magistrate  had  by  this  time  opened  the 
letter  which  was  written  in  a  fine  clear  hand, 
and  read  its  contents. 

They  ran  as  follows : 

"  To JOHNSON,  Esq.,  Justice  of  the  Peace: 

"  SIR  :  I  have  no  defence  to  the  action  instituted 
against  me  by  Charles  Landon,  of  Landon  Hall,  Esq., 
for  trespass,  and  I  plead  guilty  thereto,  always  saving 
any  criminal  intention  in  the  same. 

"  I  have  instructed  my  servant  to  satisfy  whatever 
judgment  you  may  see  fit  to  enter  against  me,  and 
should  it  exceed  the  amount  he  has  at  present,  I  re 
quest  that  no  additional  costs  may  be  added  other 
than  are  necessary,  as  I  will  meet  whatever  balance 
there  may  be  by  to-morrow  evening. 

"  Resp'y  your  obd't  serv't, 

"  THOMAS  BKOWNE." 

The  effect  of  this  letter  on  the  burly  mag 
istrate  was  to  put  him  into  a  state  of  violent 


ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER.  101 

excitement.  He  read  it  and  re-read  it,  and 
then  sat  down  and,  adjusting  his  spectacles, 
studied  it  carefully. 

Finally,  he  rose  and  beckoning  to  the  con 
stable,  walked  out  of  the  gate  to  a  point  across 
the  road  out  of  earshot  of  the  crowd,  where 
he  proceeded  to  read  the  letter  to  him. 

The  conference  was  long  and  earnest. 

"  What  in  the  -  —  did  he  have  to  go  and 
plead  guilty  for,  anyways?"  he  asked  angrily 
of  his  friend. 

"  You  was  for  him  befo'  you  got  that  letter* 
warn't  you?"  inquired  the  constable. 

"  For  him  !  In  cose  I  was  for  him  !  You 
ain'  s'pose  I  was  gwine  to  d'cide  in  favor  of 
that  air  overridin',  slanderin'  Whig,  is  you,  not 
withouten  I  was  obleeged  to !  I  ain'  forgot 
how  he  talk'  about  me,  I  tell  you.  I  was 
gwine  to  show  him  who  was  the  majistrit  of 
this  district,  I  was ;  an'  I'm  gwine  to  yit  ef 
they  is  any  way  to  do  it.  What  I  want  to 
know  is,  ain'  they  any  way  to  git  roun'  it?" 
He  indicated  the  letter. 

"Read  it  again,"  said  the  constable. 

He  read  it. 

"  c  Savin'  any  criminal  intention.'  What 
do  that  mean?  "  asked  the  constable,  shutting 


102  ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

one  eye  in  the  effort  to  focus  his  mind  on  the 
interpretation  of  the  abstruse  words. 

"That's  hit!  that's  hit!  What  a  fool  I 
am  !  Of  cose,  that's  hit !  4  Savin'  any  crimi 
nal  intention  of  the  same.'  He  can't  plead 
guilty  without  they  being  a  criminal  inten 
tion  ?  Jim,  you's  got  a  blame'  good  head  on 
you.  Ef  you  bed  the  experience,  you'd  meek 
a  first-class  majistrit." 

The  constable  looked  complacent  under  this 
compliment. 

"  Is  you  heard  that  Sam  Mills  is  a  candi 
date  for  my  place?"  the  magistrate  asked 
suddenly,  suspiciously. 

Hall  looked  a  little  embarrassed. 

"Nor;  Sam  ain'  no  candidate,"  he  said. 
He  turned  towards  the  yard,  perhaps  to  put 
an  end  to  the  conversation. 

"You'd  meek  a  sight  better  majistrit  'n 
Sam,"  said  the  justice,  insinuatingly.  "  Sam 
ain'  got  the  head  on  him." 

This  commendation  was  received  by  the 
sub-official  with  becoming  modesty,  and  the 
two  strolled  back  across  the  sandy  road,  just 
as  a  horseman  appeared  around  the  curve  a 
quarter  of  a  mile  away,  approaching  on  a  tall, 
handsome  horse,  at  a  slow,  easy  gallop.  He 


ON  NEWFOUND   EIVER.  103 

was  dressed  in  white  linen,  and  carried  an 
umbrella.  The  murmur  of  the  crowd  an 
nounced  that  he  was  a  personage  of  consider 
ation. 

"  There  he  comes,"  said  several  persons. 

"  That's  his  horse,"  announced  a  number, 
more  corroboratively. 

The  major  rode  up  and  dismounted,  flinging 
his  bridle  to  a  negro  boy,  who  stepped  for 
ward  with  his  hat  off  and  his  teeth  shining. 
The  major  raised  his  umbrella  with  delib 
eration.  Then  he  came  around  to  the  gate,  sa 
luting  every  man  he  met.  His  manner,  if 
a  little  condescending,  was  perfectly  easy 
with  all,  and  with  some  was  cordial.  It  was 
apparent  that  he  was  highly  esteemed,  for 
the  people  crowded  up  to  speak  to  him.  His 
greetings  evinced  an  accurate  knowledge  of 
each  man's  affairs.  He  even  saluted  politely, 
if  a  little  contemptuously,  the  scowling  jus 
tice,  who,  as  he  approached,  suddenly  engaged 
in  conversation  with  some  one,  and  pretended 
not  to  be  aware  of  his  arrival. 

In  a  few  moments  the  magistrate  took  his 
seat,  got  out  his  silver-rimmed  spectacles, 
wiped  them  carefully  and  put  them  on; 
cleared  his  mouth  of  tobacco,  and  looked  at 


104  07V  NEWFOUND   RIVER. 

the  major,  who  was  busy  talking  to  one  of 
his  neighbors  about  his  sick  cow. 

As  no  attention  was  paid  to  him,  the  justice 
called  the  constable,  and  raising  his  voice, 
ordered  him  to  "  open  cote." 

When  this  was  done,  by  a  short  and  inco 
herent  proclamation,  without  attracting  the 
notice  of  the  major  who  still  discoursed  with 
an  admiring  group  around  him,  the  magistrate 
directed  the  constable  to  inform  him  that  his 
case  was  called.  The  officer,  after  waiting 
respectfully  for  perhaps  five  minutes  for  a 
break  in  the  major's  speech  on  the  subject  of 
the  dry  weather,  delivered  his  message. 

"  Tell  him  I  am  not  ready,"  said  the  gentle 
man,  with  an  easy  assurance,  which  sent  the 
messenger  back  somewhat  abashed,  and  the 
speech  flowed  on  as  before,  only  with  in 
creased  urbanity. 

A  few  moments  later  his  overseer,  with  a 
law-book  in  his  hand,  rode  up  and  came  into 
the  yard. 

He  approached  his  employer  and  waited 
respectfully  for  a  time,  after  which  he  turned 
away  to  talk  to  some  of  his  friends.  But 
when  the  major,  after  delivering  himself  to 
a  group  with  much  affability  on  the  subject 


ON  NEWFOUND  EIVEE.  105 

of  the  difference  between  clover  and  orchard- 
grass  as  a  food  for  stock,  turned  suddenly  and 
walked  up  to  the  little  table  beside  which  sat 
the  scowling  magistrate,  his  manager  was  im 
mediately  behind  him. 

He  swept  the  crowd  with  a  swift  glance. 
He  was  aware  that  the  defendant  was  not 
on  the  ground,  and  anticipating  a  motion  for 
a  continuance,  was  prepared  to  deliver  him 
self  with  much  force  on  the  subject. 

"  I  am  ready  ;  where  is  the  defendant?"  he 
asked,  taking  off  his  hat. 

For  answer,  the  magistrate  leaned  over,  and 
with  accentuated  pomposity,  handed  him  the 
note,  turning  his  quid  in  his  mouth,  in  token 
of  his  perfect  indifference. 

The  major's  countenance  fell  as  he  read 
the  paper.  He  re-read  it,  and  then  handed  it 
back. 

"  I  see  he  pleads  guilty,"  he  remarked. 

"No,  he  don't,"  asserted  the  officer,  again 
rolling  his  quid  in  his  mouth,  this  time  in 
token  of  his  determination. 

The  major  frowned. 

"  Why,  he  does." 

"  Whar  do  he  do  it?"  inquired  the  justice, 
with  suspicious  blandness. 


106  ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

"  Why,  there,"  pointing  to  the  paper. 

"  I  don't  see  it." 

"  Well,  I  know  you  don't ;  you  never  see 
anything  you  don't  wish  to  see ;  but  you 
would  unless  you  were  blind  mentally  and 
morally  as  well  as  physically,"  asserted  the 
irate  major,  seizing  the  paper. 

The  crowd  appreciated  the  hit,  and  a 
chuckle  of  enjoyment  went  through  it.  The 
gentleman  read  the  note  aloud,  with  strong 
emphasis.  He  was  reading  to  the  crowd,  and 
they  appreciated  the  compliment. 

"Isn't  that  pleading  guilty?"  he  asked, 
looking  through  his  gold-rimmed  spectacles. 

"  What  does  it  say  ?  '  Savin'  any  criminal 
intention  in  the  same.'  What  does  that 
mean  ?  " 

"It  don't  mean  anything.  It  means  that 
he  is  a  word-splitting  old  jackass,  like  some 
other  people ;  that's  what  it  means,"  asserted 
the  major. 

The  crowd  applauded  with  a  guffaw. 

The  major  turned  to  them,  read  and  re-read 
the  paper,  talked  to  them  over  it,  and  so 
berated  the  old  magistrate,  that  he  was 
thrown  entirely  on  the  defensive.  He  looked 
over  at  the  constable  for  assistance ;  but  that 


ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER.  107 

official  had  incontinently  deserted  and  gone 
over  to  the  majority,  and  was  now  grinning 
from  ear  to  ear,  over  the  major's  comments 
on  the  magistrate's  judicial  construction. 

"  If  you  cannot  see  what  is  written  plainly 
on  paper,  we  have  men  among  us  who  are 
less  afflicted,"  declared  the  major. 

The  crowd  understood  this  to  be  a  refer 
ence  to  Sam  Mills,  and  several  of  them 
nudged  him.  Sam  only  chewed  silently. 

Finally,  carried  along  by  the  force  of  his 
own  eloquence,  and  inspired  by  the  sympathy 
of  the  crowd,  the  major  launched  out  against 
the  defendant. 

"  Why  does  he  remain  skulking  at  home 
when  summoned  by  law  to  appear  before  a 
magistrate  of  this  county  and  State?"  he 
asked.  "  Why  does  he  not  come  forward  and 
defend  himself  like  a  man,  if  he  is  an  honest 
man  ?  Is  he  afraid  to  face  daylight,  that  he 
prowls  around  at  night,  and  cannot  be  drawn 
out  of  his  hole  even  by  process  of  the  Com 
monwealth?  What  is  he?  Is  he  a  mur 
derer,  a  counterfeiter,  or  an  abolitionist  ?  He 
ought  to  be  made  to  appear ;  he  ought  to  be 
investigated.  This  is  no  longer  a  mere  pri 
vate  and  personal  matter;  his  conduct  is 


108  ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

against  the  peace  and  dignity  of  the  Com 
monwealth." 

This,  and  much  more  to  the  same  effect, 
the  old  gentleman  delivered  to  the  apprecia 
tive  crowd,  who  broke  into  loud  applause  at 
his  Avords. 

When,  therefore,  he  threw  the  paper  on 
the  table,  and  insisted  that  the  magistrate 
at  once  try  the  case  and  give  him  judg 
ment,  or  he  would,  at  the  next  court,  have 
an  inquiry  instituted  as  to  his  sanity,  and 
see  if  a  sane  man  could  not  be  found  to 
take  his  place,  the  justice  did  not  have  the 
courage  to  resist,  and  with  a  turn  of  his 
quid  in  his  mouth,  proceeded  to  try  the 
case. 

The  overseer  was  duly  sworn,  and  proved 
the  facts  and  the  amount  of  estimated  dam 
ages  ;  and  then  the  defendant  was  called, 
and  failing  to  appear,  the  justice,  after  much 
figuring,  gravely  delivered  judgment  in  favor 
of  the  major,  for  a  little  less  than  he  claimed ; 
delivering,  at  the  same  time,  a  speech,  which 
was  a  marvel  of  unintelligible  contradictions, 
attempting  to  reconcile  his  present  action 
with  the  stand  he  had  at  first  taken. 

The  contemptuous  indifference  with  which 


ON  NEWFOUND  EIVER.  109 

the  major  received  his  announcement  was 
noted  and  enjoyed  by  the  crowd.  He  turned 
to  the  constable. 

"  Levy  immediately,"  he  said.  "  I'll  bring 
the  old  abolitionist  out  of  his  hole." 

He  turned  away.  As  he  did  so,  he  was 
arrested  by  the  little  black  pressing  for 
ward,  and  taking  off  his  old  hat.  He 
bowed  low  to  the  major.  His  grandilo 
quence  had  disappeared,  and  in  the  pres 
ence  of  the  gentleman  he  was  the  picture 
of  humility. 

"  How  much  is  it,  marster  ?  "  he  asked. 

"  Five  dollars  and  thirty-seven  cents,"  said 
the  justice. 

The  negro's  countenance  fell. 

"  Dat's  mo'  -  '  he  began  ;  then  stopped ; 
and  after  much  fumbling,  took  out  of  his 
pocket  an  old  rag  wrapped  about  something, 
and  carefully  tied  with  a  string.  This  he 
worked  at  for  some  time,  until  he  had  un 
tied  it.  Unwrapping  it  carefully,  he  leaned 
over,  and  poured  out  on  the  table  a  hand 
ful  of  small  silver  and  copper  coins,  which 
he  carefully  pushed  into  the  very  centre  of 
the  table,  as  if  fearful  that  they  might 
roll  off. 


110  ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

"  Will  you  please  count  dem,  marster  ?"  he 
said  timidly. 

The  coin  was  counted ;  the  crowd  looking 
on  with  breathless  interest ;  the  major  stand 
ing  with  arms  folded,  looking  down  with 
contemptuous  amusement. 

"  Five  dollars  and  twenty-five  cents,"  said 
the  magistrate,  looking  over  the  table,  and 
moving  every  paper  so  as  to  prove  that  none 
was  overlooked. 

"  Five  dollars  and  twenty-five  cents,  —  five 
dollars  and  twenty-five  cents,"  repeated  the 
negro  to  himself,  looking  around  the  table. 
"  How  much  does  that  lack  ?  " 

After  a  slight  calculation  the  amount  was 
announced, 

"  Twelve  cents." 

This  sum  was  wanting.  The  negro  turned 
to  the  major. 

"  Ef  you  could  wait,  marster,  for  about  a 
week  —  "  he  began. 

"  I  won't  wait,"  said  the  major,  grimly. 

A  pause  of  uncertainty  ensued,  in  which 
the  negro  meditated.  His  face  showed  the 
deepest  concern. 

"  Dat's  ev'y  cent  dee  is  on  de  place,"  he 
said,  half  audibly,  to  himself.  Then,  in  a 
little  louder  tone, 


ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER.  Ill 

"If  any  gent'man  would  lend  me  twelve 
cents  ?  "  He  looked  around  him. 

"  There  it  is,"  said  the  major,  tossing  him 
a  dollar,  and  putting  on  his  glove. 

The  old  man's  eyes  gleamed  as  he  seized 
the  coin  and  laid  it  on  the  pile. 

The  major  walked  towards  the  gate,  but 
the  magistrate  overtook  him,  holding  the 
money  in  one  hand  and  a  paper  in  the  other. 
He  stopped. 

"  What's  this  ?  "  he  inquired  impatiently. 

"  This  is  the  judgment  for  you  to  mark 
'satisfied.'" 

The  old  justice  was  glad  of  the  opportunity 
to  display  his  superior  knowledge  on  this  one 
point  at  least.  The  major  walked  back  to 
the  table,  and  wrote  the  receipt  on  the  paper. 
Then  he  pulled  on  his  glove  slowly,  and  was 
turning  away  when  the  justice  held  out  to 
him  the  money.  He  stopped  angrily,  but 
held  out  his  hand. 

"  Count  it,"  he  said  shortly. 

The  officer  counted  it  out  coin  by  coin  into 
his  palm. 

The  major  looked  at  him  with  an  ugly 
gleam  in  his  eye;  but  just  then  the  little 
negro  passed  by  with  a  low  salute. 


112  ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

"  Here  !  "  he  said,  and  pitched  the  handful 
of  money  to  him. 

When  the  major  cantered  out  of  sight,  the 
negro  was  still  on  his  knees  searching  in  the 
short  grass  for  some  of  the  coins. 


CHAPTER   XII. 

ALL  that  afternoon  a  crowd  remained 
around  the  little  store  at  the  Crossroads, 
drinking  and  discussing  the  trial.  Several 
rows  occurred ;  Pokeberry  being  concerned 
in  more  than  one  of  them,  and  being  the 
aggressor.  Towards  sunset  he  was  quite 
under  the  influence  of  liquor,  as  were  sev 
eral  others.  When  he  was  drunk  he  was 
always  quarrelsome.  He  appeared  now  to 
have  a  special  grudge  against  the  major. 
He  came  up  to  a  group  in  which  were  Mills 
and  Hall,  and  began  a  tirade  against  Major 
Landon  for  his  contempt,  as  he  charged,  of 
a  poor  man.  Mills  took  it  up  and  denied 
flatly  that  there  was  any  ground  for  such  a 
charge. 

"  Any  hones'  po'  man  the  major  is  got  as 
much  respec'  for  as  if  he  owned  a  big  planta 
tion  and  three  hundred  niggers,"  he  declared. 
"  He  said  once  that  a  man  as  was  proud  of 
his  money  was  like  a  blacksmith  as  bragged 

113 


114  CLV  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

of  the  iron  in  his  shop  and  didn'  have  sense 
to  do  any  work  on  it." 

The  crowd  applauded  this  view,  and  Poke- 
berry,  enraged,  growled  an  angry  threat 
against  the  Landons. 

"  Why  don't  you  go  an'  tell  'em  so?"  asked 
Mills.  "  You  have  mighty  good  opportunities, 
and  I  ain'  never  heard  of  you  tellin'  either  of 
'em." 

The  laugh  of  the  crowd  stung  the  bully, 
and  with  an  oath  he  declared  that  any  man 
was  a  hound  who  followed  a  Landon. 

Mills  was  seated  on  the  fence.  He  looked 
at  him  with  slightly  contracted  eyes,  but  said 
nothing.  This  was  accepted  by  Pokeberry 
as  a  sign  that  he  was  afraid  of  him,  and  he 
stepped  a  little  nearer  him.  The  crowd 
stopped  talking  and  fell  back.  Pokeberry 
addressed  himself  directly  to  Mills. 

"  I  know  about  you,"  he  began. 

Mills  lazily  let  his  long  legs  down,  and 
slipped  from  the  fence,  which  he  leaned 
against. 

"  Look  a-here,  Pokeberry,"  he  said  slowly, 
with  another  contraction  of  his  eyes,  "go 
skeer  runaway  niggers.  Don'  you  try  it  on 
me.  If  you  does,  runaway  niggers  won'  have 
nobody  to  fool  'em  away." 


ON  NEWFOUND  EIVER.  115 

Pokeberry's  answer  to  this  was  a  furious 
demand  to  know  what  Mills  meant,  and  a 
tirade  against  any  and  all  persons  who  insin 
uated  anything  connecting  him  Avith  negroes. 

He  could  whip  any  man,  he  declared,  who 
said  anything  connecting  him  with  niggers. 

"  Look  a-here,  Pokeberry,"  said  Mills,  with 
a  slight  bend  towards  him,  "talkin's  cheap; 
but  if  you  lay  the  weight  of  your  hand  on 
me,  I'll  take  my  pocket-knife  and  cut  your 
throat  from  ear  to  ear." 

His  thin  sun-browned  face  was  grim,  and 
his  gray  eyes  burnt  back  under  his  brows ; 
but  he  was  very  quiet.  There  was  a  murmur 
from  the  bystanders.  One  or  two  of  them 
advised  Pokeberry  to  let  him  alone.  Sam 
Mills  was  not  a  man  to  trifle  with. 

Whether  it  was  that  Pokeberry  was  afraid 
of  the  spare  wiry  creature  who  looked  at  him 
with  such  fearless  eyes,  or  whether  he  deemed 
it  unwise  to  fight  with  such  a  cause  of  quar 
rel,  cannot  be  known.  But  he  began  suddenly 
an  attack  on  Dr.  Browne,  whom  he  boldly 
declared  to  be  an  abolitionist.  He  adjourned 
to  the  little  bar-room  in  the  back  of  the  store. 

This  episode  broke  up  the  crowd,  and  as  it 
was  sundown,  Mills  and  the  sober  ones  went 


116  O.V  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

home,  leaving,  however,  a  considerable  num 
ber  still  hanging  around  the  bar. 

There  Pokeberry  continued  his  attack  on 
Dr.  Browne.  He  told  of  the  disappearance 
of  the  two  negroes,  and  charged  that  the 
old  man  had  helped  to  get  them  away.  He 
adroitly  used  the  major's  speech  of  that  day, 
with  additions  of  his  own,  as  a  lever  to  move 
the  drunken  crowd. 

"  He's  a  abolitionist,"  he  kept  on  asserting, 
with  many  oaths ;  "  and  he  ought  to  be  run 
out.  That's  what  the  major  said.  He's  a 
abolitionist.  He  ought  to  be  tarred  and 
feathered,  and  run  out,  —  and  I  am  the  man 
to  do  it." 

By  the  time  he  had  repeated  this  a  score  of 
times,  with  such  embellishments  as  his  brutal 
brain  suggested,  he  had  got  the  drunken  set 
around  him  into  a  state  in  which  they  be 
lieved  the  major  had  suggested  the  tarring 
and  feathering  and  would  warmly  approve  it. 
A  few,  with  a  little  reason  left,  protested 
against  such  a  lawless  measure ;  but  the  ma 
jority,  to  the  number  of  a  dozen  or  more  of 
the  most  worthless  characters  in  the  county, 
applauded. 

"I'm  the  man  to  do  it,"  asserted  Pokeberry, 


ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER.  117 

pulling  off  his  coat,  and  turning  it  wrong  side 
outwards. 

A  few  minutes  later  he  was  out  in  the 
dark,  with  a  drunken  gang  around  him, 
clamorous  to  "drive  the  d — d  abolitionist 
out,  as  the  major  said." 

Meantime,  Major  Landon  had  arrived  at 
home  in  unusually  good  spirits.  He  had  car 
ried  his  point,  and  won  his  first  suit ;  he  had 
publicly  shown  that  the  pompous  and  self- 
important  old  magistrate  who  had  long 
opposed  him  was  a  fool,  and  had  held  him 
up  to  open  scorn  and  derision ;  and  he  had 
vindicated  his  rights,  which  were  what  he 
always  contended  for.  Accordingly,  as  he 
mounted  the  long  stone  steps  of  his  mansion, 
and  turned,  as  he  reached  the  top,  to  look  back 
over  his  wide  estate,  an  expression  of  benig 
nity  most  unusual  to  his  firm  face  rested  there. 

The  scene  before  him  was  one  which  might 
well  have  pleased  him.  As  far  as  the  eye 
could  reach  in  either  direction,  the  rolling 
fields,  green  with  grain  and  grass,  and  trav 
ersed  by  broVn  fences,  belonged  to  Landon 
Hall.  Only  immediately  opposite,  where  the 
hills  rose  on  the  other  side  of  Newfound,  was 
a  break  in  his  domain.  There  was  Landon 


118  ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

Hill,  the  first  home  of  his  forefathers,  held  by 
an  unknown  stranger.  There,  surrounded  by 
dense  woods,  and  keeping  himself  wholly  se 
cluded,  never  leaving  his  plantation,  and  de 
clining  either  to  receive  or  to  return  visits, 
lived  his  strange  neighbor.  The  tops  of  the 
clump  of  old  oak  trees  marking  the  yard 
showed  above  the  pines  which  had  been 
allowed  to  grow  and  cover  the  fields,  as  if  to 
conceal  the  old  frame  hip-roofed  house  and  its 
surroundings  from  the  gaze  of  its  imposing 
neighbor  opposite. 

A  slight  frown  crossed  Major  Landon's 
brow,  as  his  eye  rested  for  a  moment  on  this 
spot.  It  was,  perhaps,  but  the  recollection  of 
the  contest  he  had  just  been  tlirough  with  his 
recluse  neighbor. 

The  shadow  passed  in  a  moment,  and  he 
turned  away  and  entered  the  wide  hall. 

"He'll  keep  his  cows  to  himself  now,  I 
reckon,  the  old  abolitionist !  "  he  said,  with  a 
half-laugh. 

As  his  footstep  sounded  on  the  polished 
floor,  a  door  on  one  side  of  the  hall  opened, 
and  his  wife  came  forward  and  advanced 
toward  him  with  a  smile  of  welcome.  Mrs. 
Landon  still  retained  much  of  the  beauty 


ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER.  119 

which  had  made  her  years  before  the  belle  of 
her  county.  Yet  there  was  a  suggestion  of 
sadness  in  her  manner  or  her  countenance, 
it  could  scarcely  be  told  which,  though  it 
might  have  been  the  contrast  between  the 
white  hair  on  her  brow  and  the  brilliant  dark 
eyes  which  shone  in  her  pale  face  like  stars, 
and  which,  when  she  smiled,  made  her  look 
like  a  girl.  As  she  came  forward  with  a 
smile  to  meet  her  husband,  his  whole  manner 
changed.  The  gray  eyes  softened,  the  hard 
strong  mouth  with  the  clean-shaven  lip  re 
laxed,  and  a  smile  lit  up  his  face. 

"  Well  ?  "  she  said,  with  a  rising  inflection 
of  interrogation  and  of  welcome. 

"  Oh !  I  won ;  I  beat  him.  Routed  him 
4  horse,  foot,  and  dragoons.'  " 

He  put  his  hat  on  the  table,  placed  his 
gloves  carefully  in  it,  laid  his  horsewhip  on 
top,  and  put  his  arm  around  his  wife  like  a 
young  lover. 

"  I  am  so  glad  you  beat,"  she  said ;  "  but  I 
hope  you  were  not  too  hard  on  him." 

"Lucy,  I  believe  you  would  take  up  for 
the  devil,"  said  her  husband,  half  jestingly. 

"Well,  if  he  needed  it,  perhaps,"  she  smiled 
up  at  him. 


120  ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

"  Well,  I  wasn't  hard  on  them  at  all.  If  I 
had  not  warranted  him,  there  never  would 
have  been  any  end  to  it.  You  will  bear  me 
witness  that  I  had  stood  it  for  years;  had 
sent  him  word ;  and  had  shown  the  forbear 
ance  of  a  saint,  and  I  was  forced  to  apply  to 
the  law.  The  rascal !  It  is  as  well  he  did 
not  come  there,  for  I  might  have  been  tempted 
to  lay  my  horsewhip  over  his  shoulders.  I 
believe  he  drove  his  cows  across  the  river  into 
my  fields,  anyhow.  I  do  not  see  how  they 
managed  otherwise  to  get  through  the  swamp 
so  readily. 

"  I  am  afraid  they  are  very-  poor,  and  you 
know  he  might  have  been  sick  when  you  sent 
him  word,"  sighed  Mrs.  Landon. 

"  Sick !  the  mischief !  He  has  not  been 
sick  for  twenty  years,  I  reckon ;  and  he  has 
been  hiding  from  me  that  long.  It  is  my 
opinion  that  he  has  been  at  the  bottom  of  all 
the  devilment  that  has  been  going  on  so  long 
in  the  country." 

"  I  wish  they  would  let  me  do  something 
for  them,"  said  Mrs.  Landon,  who  was  the 
incarnation  of  charity. 

"I  don't  want  to  do  anything  for  them, 
except  get  rid  of  them  and  their  cows,"  as- 


O^Y  NEWFOUND  1UVEE.  121 

serted  the  major.  "  If  I  had  anything  to  go 
on,  I  would  lodge  a  complaint  against  him ; 
that  is  what  I'd  do.  I  hoped  to  have  got  a 
sight  of  him  to-day ;  but  the  rascal  was  afraid 
to  face  me."  The  major  was  working  him 
self  up  to  the  usual  pitch  of  excitement  over 
his  wrongs. 

"  My  dear,  they  say  he  is  a  most  kind  and 
gentle  person,  and  does  a  great  deal  of  good, 
and  if  he  choose  to  withdraw  himself  —  He 
must  be  a  good  man  ;  because  — 

"A  good  man,  Lucy!"  interrupted  the 
major,  hotly.  "  Who  ever  heard  of  a  good 
man  shunning  the  daylight,  and  hiding  from 
the  eyes  of  his  neighbors,  and  going  out  only 
at  night  like  a  mink  or  a  ground-hog?  He 
is  an  abolitionist,  in  my  opinion." 

When  the  major  expressed  a  thing  as  his 
"  opinion,"  Mrs.  Landon  knew  that  there  was 
the  end  of  it ;  that  it  was  useless  to  attempt 
to  combat  it. 

"  You  did  not  make  them  pay  any  money, 
I  hope,"  she  said  sweetly,  as  she  drew  a  chair 
up  near  that  into  which  her  husband  had 
thrown  himself. 

"Of  course  I  didn't,  —  that  is,  I  gave  it 
back  after  I  had  made  him  pay  it,"  he  re- 


122  ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

plied.  He  did  not  think  it  worth  while 
to  tell  her  just  how  he  had  given  it  back. 
Indeed,  the  manner  of  its  return  did  not 
strike  him  now  as  being  altogether  as  praise 
worthy  as  he  had  considered  it  when,  in  the 
presence  of  a  gaping  throng,  he  had  tossed 
it  disdainfully  to  the  old  negro,  who  had 
counted  it  out  so  quietly  after  the  justice 
had  decided  against  his  master. 

He  did  not  know  that  at  that  moment  Poke- 
berry  Green,  half  sotted  with  liquor,  was 
urging  his  word  to  a  drunken  crowd  as  a 
justification  for  an  act  of  outrageous  violence. 

The  soft  evening  air  came  through  the 
open  windows  with  the  odor  of  grass  upon 
it.  It  brought  back  a  reminiscence  to  the 
major,  and  he  went  off  into  reflection.  Sud 
denly  he  aroused  himself. 

"  Where  is  Bruce?  "  he  asked. 

"  He  took  his  rod  and  went  off  after  lunch 
to  take  a  fish,"  said  Mrs.  Landon,  quickly. 
A  faint  shade  of  anxiety  came  into  her  eyes, 
and  she  looked  around,  taking  in  her  hus 
band's  face  in  her  glance. 

He  shifted  in  his  chair,  and  presently 
reached  over  and  took  a  book  from  the  table. 
The  act  was  full  of  emphasis.  He  opened 


O^Y  NEWFOUND  RIVER.  123 

the  book  and  turned  over  the  leaves  impa 
tiently. 

"  I  wish  he  would  stay  at  home  sometimes. 
I  don't  like  the  way  he  is  carrying  on,"  he 
said  abruptly,  throwing  the  book  back  on  the 
table,  and  rising  with  a  jerk  from  the  chair. 

The  look  of  anxiety  on  Mrs.  Landon's  face 
deepened. 

"  My  dear,  I  hope  you  will  not  say  any 
thing  to  him  Avhen  he  comes  in,"  she  said 
with  a  tone  of  entreaty.  "  He  is  very  —  " 
She  paused. 

"  Certainly  not,  if  you  wish  it,"  said  the 
major  ;  "  but  things  have  come  to  a  pretty 
pass.  I  am  to  stand  all  his  humors  and  dis 
obedience  and  never  say  a  word.  What  is 
he  always  going  over  there  after?  " 

"  My  dear,  you  forget  that  Bruce  is  a  man 
now." 

"I  don't  care  if  he  is  forty  men,"  inter 
rupted  the  major,  hotly ;  "  if  he  stays  here,  he 
has  to  conform  to  my  wishes.  I  thought  he 
had  improved,  but  I  believe  that  he  is  worse 
than  ever." 

Mrs.  Landon  walked  up  and  put  her  hand 
over  his  mouth. 

"  Don't  say  that." 


124  O.V  NEWFOUND  1UVEE. 

"  It  is  base  ingratitude.     I  have  given  him 

every  advantage  and  have  spent  a  fortune  on 

him,  and  he  takes  no  notice  of  my  requests 

—  none  whatever.      I  asked  him  to  go  up 

with  me  to-day,  and  —  " 

"  He  could  not  have  understood  you,"  de 
fended  his  mother. 

"  Could  not?  He  could  not  have  misun 
derstood  me  ;  but  he  is  bent  on  thwarting 
my  wishes." 

"  Oh,  no  !  I  am  sure  that  you  misjudge 
him." 

"  Nothing  of  the  kind ;  he  was  determined 
I  should  dismiss  my  warrant  against  that 
rascal,  and  when  I  would  not,  he  refused  to 
do  what  I  asked  him.  Why  is  he  suddenly 
so  interested  in  that  old  creature  ?  Ten  days 
ago  he  was  urging  me  to  bring  suit." 

Mrs.  Landon  did  not  answer,  hoping  to 
put  an  end  to  the  conversation ;  but  the  ma 
jor's  mind  was  working. 

"  It  was  a  great  mistake  to  send  him  off  to 
school  when  we  did.  He  has  got  chocked 
full  of  all  those  fool  notions  about  humanita- 
rianism  those  people  have,  and  which  they 
substitute  for  law  and  order  and  religion  and 
everything  else." 


O^V  NEWFOUND  EIVEE.  125 

"  Oh,  I  don't  think  so ;  you  are  unjust  to 
him,"  urged  his  wife. 

"Why,  he  insisted  that  I  should  dismiss 
the  warrant,  and  let  old  Browne's  cows  eat 
up  my  corn.  What  do  you  call  that?" 

"  I  think  it  was  very  kind  and  generous  in 
him." 

The  major  gave  a  sniff. 

"  Kind  and  generous,  the  mischief  !  It's 
easy  to  be  kind  and  generous  on  other  peo 
ple's  money.  It's  my  opinion  that  he  is  ex 
traordinarily  interested  in  old  Browne's  cows 
all  of  a  sudden.  The  first  thing  you  know 
he'll  be  involved  in  some  scandal.  The 
idea  of  his  running  opposition  to  Pokeberry 
Green !  " 

"I  do  not  think  there  is  any  danger  of 
that,"  Mrs.  Landon  said  warmly. 

"  What  makes  him  go  down  fishing  every 
afternoon  on  that  side  of  the  mill-pond.  He 
is  certainly  not  after  fish,  for  he  never  catches 
any." 

"  Oh,  yes,  he  does,"  began  Mrs.  Landon. 

"  Well,  in  my  opinion,  it  is  not  fish  he's 
after.  I  will  put  a  stop  to  it.  I  shall  give 
him  my  orders,  and  if  he  wishes  to  stay  here, 
he  must  obey  them." 


120  ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

"  You  will  not  do  any  such  thing,"  said  his 
wife,  rising,  and  placing  her  hand  on  his 
shoulder,  coaxingly. 

The  entrance  of  a  servant  put  an  end  to 
the  discussion. 

Whether  the  major  was  right  or  not  as  to 
Bruce's  general  luck,  he  was  correct  about 
that  occasion;  for  when  Bruce  returned  he 
had  not  so  much  as  one  fish  to  show. 


CHAPTER    XIII. 

IF,  however,  Bruce  had  not  had  any  good 
luck  with  fish,  he  had  had  what  he  deemed 
yet  better  fortune.  He  had  met  Margaret 
Reid  again. 

He  was  sauntering  along  the  path  which 
led  up  the  pond,  through  the  bushes  and 
pines,  when  he  came  suddenly  upon  her  gath 
ering  blackberries.  She  turned  and  faced 
him  smilingly  as  he  unexpectedly  appeared. 

A  man  may  become  ever  so  successful  in 
after  life ;  he  may  amass  wealth,  secure 
power,  and  achieve  fame ;  but  after  a  certain 
age  he  can  never  turn  a  corner  in  the  street 
or  a  curve  in  the  road,  and  meet  an  angel 
face  to  face  with  the  glory  of  heaven  all 
about  her.  This  belongs  to  youth,  and  youth 
alone.  It  happened  to  Bruce.  He  turned  a 
clump  of  bushes,  and  the  dull  hillside  became 
suddenly  transformed  with  an  ineffable  glory. 
It  was  only  a  girl  with  a  big  straw  hat  on 
her  brown  head,  and  with  a  glow  in  her 

127 


128  OA7  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

cheeks,  her  half-startled  look  changing  into 
one  of  pleased  surprise  ;  but  she  seemed  to 
him  to  shed  a  radiance  around  her,  and  to  fill 
the  woods  with  light. 

He  helped  her  to  fill  the  bucket  she  had. 
The  afternoon  sun  shone  down  sultry,  and 
the  summer  air  was  still.  The  not  distant 
"Coo -coo,  coo-oo-oo"  of  a  dove  was  the 
only  sound  that  reached  them.  He  made 
Margaret  sit  down  in  the  shade,  and  cutting 
some  long  bits  of  the  blackberry  bush  filled 
with  white  blossoms  pealed  the  briars  from 
them  for  her  as  he  lounged  beside  her. 

Bruce  had  something  on  his  conscience 
which  he  wished  to  tell  her.  Until  this  was 
done  he  felt  uneasy.  He  could  not,  however, 
see  his  way  to  begin. 

She  took  off  her  large  hat  and  wreathed 
the  boughs  around  it. 

"  What  a  pity  we  cannot  always  have  the 
thorns  cut  from  among  the  flowers  for  us," 
she  said. 

Bruce  rose  to  his  feet. 

"  I  have  something  to  tell  you,  but  I  do  not 
know  how  to  say  it,"  he  began. 

She  stood  up  and  looked  at  him  with  grave 
surprise  in  her  eyes. 


ON  NEWFOUND  EIVEE.  129 

"  What  is  it?  "  she  presently  asked. 

"  You  know  that  my  father  has  brought  a 
warrant,  a  suit,  against  your  grandfather  ?  - 

Her  face  flushed  slightly  and  her  eyes 
opened  wider.  He  saw  she  knew  all  about 
it,  and  proceeded, 

"  I  wish  to  tell  you  —  I  want  you  to  know 
that  it  was  my  fault,  —  that  it  was  I  who 
made  him  do  it,  —  who  started  it." 

Her  head  straightened  on  her  shoulders 
and  her  expression  changed.  It  was  plainly 
a  shock  to  her. 

"I  wanted  you  to  know  that  it  was  not 
my  father.  If  I  had  known  something  that 
I  now  know ;  if  I  had  met  your  old  woman 
before,  I  would  never  have  done  what  I  did. 
I  would  make  any  reparation  in  the  world 
I  could.  You  don't  know  how  much  I  regret 
it." 

She  suddenly  turned  away  and  began  to 
cry  quietly. 

"  I  did  not  think  you  would  have  been  so 
cruel,"  she  sobbed.     "  If  you  knew  how  my 
grandfather  has  suffered —  how  he  bears  — 
She  could  say  no  more. 

"  I  do  know.  I  regret  it  more  than  I  can 
tell  you.  It  was  inexcusable  in  me." 


130  ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

He  took  hold  of  her  hand  and  kissed  it. 

"  If  you  knew  how  deeply  I  regret  it,  you 
would  forgive  me." 

She  said  nothing,  but  she  did  not  draw  her 
hand  away  until  he  had  kissed  it  again. 

He  had  a  new  feeling  for  her,  and  one 
which  he  had  never  had  before  for  any 
one.  He  wanted  to  comfort  her.  He  longed 
to  take  her  in  his  arms.  Yet  lie  hardly 
dared  to  touch  her  hand.  He  had  suddenly 
grown  afraid  of  her.  What  if  she  should 
be  angry  with  him?  If  she  should  not  for 
give  him  ?  Life  seemed  to  grow  dark  at  the 
thought. 

"  Do  you  forgive  me  ?  "  he  asked  in  a  low 
voice  of  entreaty,  as  she  moved  slightly. 

"  Yes,"  with  her  face  still  averted. 

She  was  wiping  her  eyes  like  a  little  girl. 
The  sun  once  more  came  out.  He  felt  like  a 
ransomed  criminal. 

"  I  must  go  now,"  she  said.  "  I  always  give 
my  grandfather  his  cup  of  tea  in  the  after 
noon  ;  he  is  so  feeble,  and  has  been  so  wor 
ried  about  that  suit." 

"  May  I  walk  home  with  you  ?  "  He  asked 
it  as  if  she  had  the  power  of  life  and  death. 

She  allowed  him  to  walk   as    far   as  the 


ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER.  131 

spring.  He  felt  grateful  for  even  this,  and 
followed  her  humbly. 

At  the  spring  she  said  good  by,  and  held 
out  her  hand. 

He  took  it  and  pressed  it;  and  then,  rais 
ing  it  quickly,  pressed  it  to  his  lips. 

"  Good  by." 

She  gave  a  little  start,  and  drew  it  away. 

He  did  not  dare  to  look  at  her.  When  he 
did  look  up,  her  face  was  still  turned  away 
from  him,  and  she  moved  towards  the  path 
which  led  up  to  the  house. 

When  Bruce  reached  home,  he  was  too 
much  filled  with  thoughts  of  Margaret  Reid 
to  care  for  other  company.  He  did  not 
care  to  meet  his  father,  who  he  knew  would 
be  full  of  his  case.  So  he  sauntered  into 
the  library,  and  pretended  to  look  over  a 
book;  but  he  found  himself  unable  to  read, 
and  he  was  sinking  into  a  drowsy  state  of 
insensibility  to  everything  around  him,  when 
he  was  aroused  by  a  rapid  step  outside,  fol 
lowed  by  a  quick  knock  on  the  door. 

"  Come  in,"  he  called.  He  had  some  curi 
osity  ;  for  it  was  not  often  in  that  placid 
atmosphere  that  any  step  so  energetic  was 
heard,  or  any  rap  so  excited. 


132  ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

A  servant  entered,  and  shutting  the  door 
behind  him,  stopped,  hat  in  hand.  He  was 
manifestly  under  unusual  excitement. 

"  Well,  Henry,  what  is  it  ? "  inquired  his 
master. 

"  I  heah  dee's  some  trouble  gwine  on  over 
on  the  other  side  of  the  pawn,"  he  began  hesi 
tatingly,  "  and  I  thought  I'd  better  come  and 
let  marster  know." 

"  Yes,  that's  right,"  said  Bruce,  languidly. 
"What  is  it?" 

"I  don'  know,  suh.  Dick  —  Dick  Runa 
way  's  jes'  come  home,  —  he's  been  off  two 
or  three  days,  —  an'  he  heah  somehow  about 
de  warrant  tryin'  to-day,  an'  lie  say  he  heah 
dat  after  marster  come  away  dee  all  got  to 
drinkin'  at  de  groggery,  an'  dat  Pokeberry 
got  'em  sort  o'  stirred  up,  an'  Dick  Runaway 
say  dee's  gone  over  to  old  Dr.  Browne's  to 
breck  him  up,  —  to  tar  an'  feather  him,  an' 
burn  his  house  down." 

Bruce  sprang  to  his  feet. 

"What's  that?"  he  asked  sharply.  "A 
mob  !  Why  have  they  gone  there  ?  " 

"  I  don'  know,  suh.  Dick  says  dee's  a  whole 
parcel  on  'em,"  said  the  negro,  looking  down 
at  the  side  of  his  shoe.  "  He  say  he  heah  'em 


ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER.  133 

talkin',  an'  dee  say  'tis  cause  he's  a  ;  aboli- 
tioner,'  or  someV  ;  I  don't  know  nuthin'  'bout 
it."  He  gave  a  sort  of  uneasy  laugh  at  the 
word. 

"  Dat  feller  Pokeberry's  a  bad  feller,"  he 
added. 

"  All  right,"  said  Bruce  ;  "  I'll  see  about  it. 
That's  all." 

He  turned  and  hurried  to  his  room,  and  the 
negro  retired. 

A  minute  later  Bruce  left  the  house  by  a 
side  door,  with  his  shot-gun  in  his  hand,  and 
descended  the  hill  towards  the  river  at  a  swift 
trot. 


CHAPTER   XV. 

WHEN  Margaret  had  given  her  grandfather 
his  tea,  she  went  to  her  room.  Somehow  she 
was  filled  with  a  mysterious  unrest.  What 
had  come  over  her?  She  did  not  know  her 
self.  For  the  first  time  the  life  she  was  lead 
ing  failed  to  satisfy  her ;  she  was  stifled  and 
confined.  She  had  suddenly  outgrown  her 
surroundings  and  become  miserable. 

Why  did  her  grandfather  remain  shut  up  ? 
she  thought !  Why  had  he  always  discounte 
nanced  her  going  out  into  the  neighborhood  ? 
Why  was  he  so  silent  about  her  mother? 
Why  was  he  so  strange  sometimes  ?  Oh,  if 
he  should  die  and  leave  her !  Why  were 
they  so  secluded?  Had  he  been  rich  once? 
The  old  dresses  in  the  trunks  in  the  garret 
were  of  the  finest  stuffs.  Whose  could  they 
have  been  ?  Why  was  she  suddenly  so  dis 
satisfied  and  wretched?  And,  oh!  why  was 
she  thinking  at  all  of  Bruce  Landon  ?  He 
was  nothing  to  her.  He  must  be  infinitely 
134 


ON  NEWFOUND  1UVEB.  135 

above  her.  She  knew  he  was ;  yet  she  did 
not  feel  it.  He  had  kissed  her  hand.  Why 
had  he  done  it?  He  had  taken  a  liberty 
with  her,  and  she  had  permitted  it,  and  now 
he  despised  her.  She  felt  sure  of  it.  She 
despised  herself.  She  would  never  see  him 
again.  Yes,  she  would  go  and  meet  him,  and 
show  him  that  she  was  not  one  to  be  kissed 
and  taken  liberties  with.  She  was  so  wretched 
that  she  ended  by  throwing  herself  on  her 
bed  and  crying  herself  to  sleep.  When  she 
awaked,  it  was  nearly  dark.  Her  grand 
father  was  calling  her. 

There  was  a  lovely,  old  curious-flowered 
lawn,  with  short  sleeves  and  a  short  waist. 
She  had  brought  it  down  from  the  garret, 
and  had  tried  it  on.  It  just  fitted  her.  It 
had  lain  in  her  dresser  ever  since.  She  took 
it  out  and,  under  an  impulse,  put  it  on.  It 
was  the  first  time  she  had  worn  anything  but 
the  plain,  coarse  stuff  bought  in  the  country. 
She  could  not  help  being  pleased  at  the  result. 
If  Bruce  Landon  could  only  see  her  in  it! 
She  determined  to  surprise  her  grandfather. 

"  All  right ;  I'm  coming  in  a  moment,"  she 
called  cheerfully  to  him,  in  answer  to  his 
impatient  summons. 


136  ON  NEWFOUND  RIVES. 

When  she  walked  in,  the  old  man  nearly 
sprang  from  his  chair.  She  was  a  vision. 

"Gracious  God!  where  did  you  get  that?" 
he  gasped. 

She  told  him.  He  sank  back  in  his  chair 
and  closed  his  eyes.  A  groan  escaped  his 
pale  lips. 

"  What  is  it,  grandpapa  ?  "  she  asked,  fright 
ened  at  the  effect  on  him. 

"Nothing;  only  you  startled  me,"  he  said. 

She  pressed  him. 

"  I  have  made  you  an  outcast,  I  have  sold 
your  birthright,"  he  said  bitterly.  "  You  will 
live  to  curse  me." 

uOh,  grandpapa!"  She  kissed  him  ten 
derly.  "  You  are  my  all  — -  all  I  have  in  the 
world." 

"  Yes,  all  —  all  you  have  in  the  world ;  and 
when  I  have  gone,  what  will  you  have  ?  It 
is  the  same  with  every  one.  I  seem  to  have 
cursed  them  all,  to  have  put  a  blight  upon 
them.  I  have  been  cursed." 

He  was  speaking  to  himself. 

"Oh,  grandpapa,  please  don't!"  sobbed 
Margaret,  putting  her  hands  on  him  caress 
ingly. 

"  I  have  been  your  worst  enemy,"  groaned 


ON  NEWFOUND  B1VEE.  137 

the  old  man.  "  If  you  knew  all,  you  would 
curse  me." 

Margaret  knelt  beside  him  and  flung  her 
arms  around  him. 

"  I  would  love  you  as  I  do,  better  than  all 
the  world." 

"  I  hoped  you  would  escape,"  he  muttered, 
his  head  sinking  back  on  his  pillow. 

"  Grandpapa,  tell  me  about  my  mother," 
she  pleaded,  laying  her  hand  on  his  shoulder. 

He  became  too  agitated  to  do  so.  But 
after  a  time  he  grew  calmer. 

"  She  was  an  angel,"  he  said. 

He  had  not  understood  her,  and  had  been 
too  hard  with  her ;  had  opposed  her  marriage 
to  a  young  officer,  whom  she  loved,  and  she 
had  married  him  against  his  wishes.  He  was 
killed  shortly  afterwards.  But  even  then,  he 
had  been  cruel  and  had  refused  to  forgive  her. 
Then  she,  Margaret,  had  been  born,  and  she 
had  sent  for  him  to  come  and  forgive  her 
before  she  died,  and  he  had  gone  to  her,  and 
reached  her  just  in  time.  She  had  died  in 
his  arms,  forgiven ;  but  after  she  had  placed 
her  baby  in  his  hands  in  token  of  her  love 
for  him.  He  had  resigned  from  the  navy, 
bought  this  place,  and  come  here  to  live. 


138  ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

It  was  the  first  time  he  had  ever  said  so 
much  of  her,  and  the  girl's  hungry  spirit  was 
feeding  on  the  details  and  memories  the  old 
gentleman  recalled,  as  if  they  were  the  bread 
of  life. 

"Grandpapa,  was  she  beautiful?"  she 
asked. 

"As  an  angel,"  he  said  gravely.  "She 
was  very  like  you,  my  darling.  She  was 
fitted  to  shine  in  any  station."  The  current 
of  his  thoughts  seemed  to  change. 

"Margaret,"  he  said  suddenly,  "you  have 
met  that  young  man  —  young  Landon?" 

"  Yes,  grandpapa,"  in  a  very  low  voice. 
She  was  glad  the  twilight  shielded  her. 

"He  is  proud  and  vain  of  his  name  and 
position?"  There  was  an  interrogation 
rather  than  an  affirmation  in  his  tone. 

"  I  do  not  know  —  I  cannot  tell." 

"He  is  handsome?  and  self-confident?" 
Again  the  interrogation. 

Her  heart  gave  a  bound  at  the  picture  the 
terms  called  up. 

"  Yes,  grandpapa  —  exceedingly." 

"  It  is  the  way  with  all  of  them,"  he  mur 
mured. 

"You  love  him?" 


ON  NEWFOUND  EIVEE.  139 

"  No,  grandpapa,"  with  a  little  gasp. 

"  You  will  fall  in  love  with  him,"  said  the 
old  gentleman,  this  time  without  the  inter 
rogation  in  his  tone.     "  And  he  will  not  fall 
in  love  with  you  —    '  he  paused,  "  unless,  — 
unless  —         He  broke  off. 

"  You  will  live  to  curse  me,"  he  said  bit 
terly.  "  I  am  cursed.  I  have  always  been." 
His  head  sank  on  his  breast. 

The  girl  flung  herself  on  her  knees  be 
side  him,  and,  stretching  out  her  arms, 
placed  her  hands  on  his  shoulders  and  held 
him. 

"  Grandpapa,"  she  said,  eagerly  lifting  her 
face,  "I  am  not  in  love  with  him;  I  will 
never  be  in  love  with  him  without  your  full 
approval.  I  promise  you  here  on  my  knees. 
Oh,  grandfather  !  "  Her  voice  broke.  She 
laid  her  face  against  him  and  began  to  sob. 
A  moment  after  she  raised  up.  "  I  am  your 
granddaughter,"  she  said  with  pride,  "  and  I 
will  never  be  in  love  with  him  —  unless  he  is 
first  in  love  with  me,  and  then  not  without 
your  consent."  She  rose  and  seated  herself 
calmly  in  her  chair. 

A  look  of  admiration  came  over  the  ohl 
man's  face, 


140  ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

"  He  will  be  in  love  with  you,"  he  said,  as 
if  to  himself. 

Suddenly  both  started,  as  a  strange  noise 
came  to  them  from  without. 

Any  sound  was  a  novelty  in  that  quiet  spot, 
where  even  the  cackling  of  a  hen,  the  low  of 
the  cows,  or  the  voices  of  the  birds  made 
themselves  felt  and  noted  on  the  utter  silence 
of  the  place. 

But  this  noise  was  peculiar:  it  was  con 
fused,  unwonted,  threatening. 

Margaret's  eyes  opened  wide  as  she  sat 
straight  upright  in  her  chair,  and  turned  her 
head  to  the  window.  The  noise  swelled. 
Suddenly  a  gun  was  fired  without,  and  loud 
shouts,  mingled  with  boisterous  laughter, 
sounded  in  the  yard.  Margaret  sprang  to 
her  feet,  with  a  white  face,  and  her  grand 
father  suddenly  rose  from  his  chair,  under 
the  excitement  of  the  moment  oblivious  of 
his  rheumatism,  and  started  to  the  door. 

"  Youee — yah — ah,"  came  the  shouts  from 
without,  followed  by  loud  boisterous  laughter ; 
and  then  high  above  it  all  came  the  shrill,  ex 
cited  voice  of  old  Milly,  the  words  drowned  by 
the  confusion  and  derision  which  greeted  them. 
Margaret  pressed  close  to  her  grandfather. 


O^V   NEWFOUND  E1VEE.  141 

"  Oh,  grandfather !  what  is  it  coming  ? 
Who  are  they?  What  can  they  want? 
Don't  go  out, — please,"  as  the  old  man 
started  to  the  door. 

Old  Milly's  voice  suddenly  rang  out, 

"  Ole  marster." 

The  effect  was  electrical.  The  old  officer 
turned  back,  and,  reaching  up  over  the  man 
tel,  seized  the  dusty  sabre  which  had  hung 
there  for  many  a  long  day,  and  strode 
towards  the  door.  Before  he  could  reach  it, 
however,  the  outer  door,  which  always  re 
mained  unlocked,  was  flung  open,  and  a  num 
ber  of  intruders  crowded  pell-mell  into  the 
narrow  hall  with  shouts  and  oaths. 

"  Come  out  of  your  hole,  you  old  aboli 
tionist  ! "  they  cried. 

Margaret  started  to  spring  to  the  door  of 
the  chamber  to  lock  it,  but  before  she  could 
reach  it,  it  was  thrown  open  violently,  disclos 
ing  a  coarse,  burly  fellow,  his  face  blackened 
as  a  disguise,  and  with  a  long,  charred  pine 
torch  in  his  hand,  as  heavy  as  a  club ;  whilst 
behind  him  were  a  half-a-dozen  others,  also 
with  blackened  faces,  and  all  evidently  full  of 
liquor. 

The  girl  shrank  back  with  a  cry  of  terror 


142  ON  NEWFOUND  UIVER. 

as  the  ruffian  in  front  broke  into  a  loud 
laugh  and,  calling  to  those  behind  to  come 
on,  stepped  in  the  door.  The  old  surgeon, 
with  a  quick  movement,  put  the  girl  behind 
him,  and  seizing  the  weapon  in  both  hands, 
jerked  the  sword  from  the  rusty  scabbard. 
Youth  had  suddenly  come  back  to  his  veins ; 
the  emaciated  frame  straightened,  and  the 
sunken  eyes  blazed  like  coals.  An  angry 
exclamation  burst  from  his  lips,  and  he  took 
a  step  forward,  about  to  dash  upon  the  mob. 
But  Margaret,  in  her  terror,  was  clinging  to 
him  and  holding  him.  As  it  was,  the  ruffians 
gave  back  at  the  sudden  transformation  and 
retreated  almost  out  of  the  room.  They 
stood  thus,  for  a  moment,  blocking  the  door. 
Then  the  blackened-faced  leader  called  to 
his  comrades  to  come  on,  and  with  drunken 
bravado  advanced  again  into  the  apartment, 
cursing  his  companions  for  not  backing  him. 
They  were  just  closing  up  again,  when  some 
thing  occurred  outside  which  drove  the  lead 
ers  confusedly  several  steps  into  the  room, 
and  so  close  to  the  old  man  as  he  stood  at 
bay,  that  he  raised  his  sword  with  a  furious 
oath  to  cut  the  leader  down. 

Before  he  could  do  so,  however,  the  mob 


ON  NEWFOUND  &1VEE.  148 

which  blocked  the  door  was  suddenly  split, 
and  a  young  fellow  burst  through  them, 
flinging  them  right  and  left.  He  was  bare 
headed,  and  in  one  hand  he  grasped  a  shot 
gun.  As  he  sprang  into  the  room  and  faced 
about,  the  mob  fell  back,  squeezing  out  of 
the  door  as  fast  as  they  could,  for  it  was 
Bruce  Landon,  with  his  Landon  blood  up  and 
a  gun  in  his  hand. 

"  Get  out  of  here,  you  ruffians ! "  he  said, 
bringing  his  gun  down  upon  them.  They 
did  not  need  this.  They  were  getting  out 
as  fast  as  they  could,  all,  at  least,  except  the 
leader,  who  was  Pokeberry  Green. 

With  the  bravado  born  of  his  brutal  nature 
inflamed  by  liquor,  he  turned  and  jerked  out 
a  pistol.  As  he  did  so,  however,  Bruce  sprang 
on  him.  The  impetus  of  the  leap  sent  him 
spinning  out  into  the  passage,  where,  in  the 
dark,  they  wrestled  and  struggled  for  life. 

Bruce  was  unable  to  use  one  hand  well,  as 
he  still  held  his  gun;  but  he  had  driven 
Pokeberry  to  the  door  and  was  forcing  him 
steadily  back  when  there  was  a  deafening 
report,  a  sudden  blaze  of  light  in  his  face, 
and  he  felt  a  sensation  as  if  a  hot  needle  had 
run  into  his  shoulder.  He  sank  back,  letting 


144  ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

go  his  antagonist;  but  mustering  all  his 
strength,  swung  his  gun  around  his  head 
with  his  uninjured  arm  and  gave  him  a  blow 
which  sent  him  staggering  backward,  out  into 
the  darkness.  He  heard  him  fall  heavily 
on  the  portico,  and  then  he  remembered  no 
more. 

The  next  thing  he  knew,  he  felt  a  soft 
touch  on  his  arm  and  was  conscious  that 
his  shoulder  hurt  him  a  good  deal,  and  that 
he  was  violently  thirsty.  Some  one  was  say 
ing  something  in  a  low  voice,  and  he  opened 
his  eyes.  He  was  lying  on  a  bed  with  white 
curtains  around  it,  in  a  little,  low-pitched 
room.  One  arm  was  bare,  and  his  shoulder 
was  being  bandaged  by  two  persons,  one  of 
whom  was  an  old  man,  with  a  long,  white 
beard  and  eyes  set  far  back  under  his  heavy 
brows,  who  was  sitting  on  the  bed ;  and  the 
other,  a  young  girl,  who  was  kneeling  beside 
him,  with  her  face  nearly  on  a  level  with 
his.  Her  hands  were  busy  with  the  band 
ages,  one  on  his  arm  and  one  holding  the 
roll.  Her  face  was  very  grave  and  solici 
tous.  When  he  first  opened  his  eyes  her  dark 
lashes  were  almost  lying  on  her  cheek,  as  she 
looked  down  at  her  work.  As  he  moved, 


ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER.  145 

however,  she  glanced  at  his  face,  and  as  she 
caught  his  gaze,  her  great  dark  eyes  suddenly 
lit  up,  lighting  her  whole  face.  Bruce  never 
forgot  the  look,  nor  the  sensation  of  her  soft 
hand  on  his  arm. 

"  I  must  get  up,"  he  said  immediately ;  but 
both  voices,  at  once,  insisted  that  he  must  do 
nothing  of  the  kind ;  the  old  man,  with  grave 
decision,  and  the  girl,  with  sweet  earnest 
ness.  As  Bruce  was  feeling  weak,  he  sank 
back  and  languidly  gazed  at  the  two  or  three 
old  slender  chairs,  and  the  thin-legged  table, 
on  which  were  a  few  books,  and  a  bowl  filled 
with  jonquils,  which  shone  like  gold  against 
the  snowy  drapery  of  the  dresser  beyond. 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

BRUCE'S  wound  proved,  after  all,  not  to 
be  serious  ;  and  he  walked  home  next  day, 
though  he  was  pallid  and  feeble  from  loss  of 
blood. 

There  was  intense  excitement  at  Landon 
Hall  when  next  morning  the  fact  that  he 
had  been  shot  was  known.  His  father  was 
in  a  consuming  fury.  He  vowed  that  he 
would  at  once  have  the  entire  gang  of  ruf 
fians  arrested  and  sent  to  the  penitentiary. 
He  was  only  restrained  by  the  knowledge 
that  to  do  this  it  would  be  necessary  to 
bring  out  the  fact  of  Bruce's  presence  on  the 
occasion ;  and  this  he  was  unwilling  to  do. 
He  could  not  tolerate  the  idea  of  his  name 
being  dragged  into  public  in  connection  with 
one  whom  he  despised.  This,  however,  did 
not  prevent  his  publicly  denouncing  the 
affair  in  terms  little  short  of  violent. 

That  such  an  outrage  should  have  been 
perpetrated  in  his  immediate  neighborhood, 
146 


ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER.  147 

under  his  very  nose,  and,  as  it  were,  actually 
on  the  borders  of  his  own  plantation,  was  a 
crime  not  to  be  overlooked.  The  major  had 
no  conception  that  his  words  had  borne  a 
part  in  the  instigation  of  the  act :  they  had 
been  spoken  in  heat,  and  he  had  never  given 
a  thought  to  them  since.  Indeed,  he  could 
not  have  been  induced  to  believe  that  any 
connection  existed  between  them  and  the 
outrageous  act  which  had  been  perpetrated. 
Words  were  one  thing,  —  every  man  had  a 
right  to  talk  and  express  his  opinion ;  but  to 
go  and  break  into  a  man's  house  in  the  night, 
and  attempt  to  drag  him  out  —  why,  it  was 
monstrous !  He  would  have  gone  over  to 
Dr.  Browne's  and  have  advised  him  to  have 
the  whole  set  of  ruffians  arrested,  but  he  had 
sworn  that  he  would  never  set  his  foot  on  the 
place  until  he  owned  it.  He  contented  him 
self,  therefore,  with  riding  about  the  neighbor 
hood,  denouncing  the  whole  affair  with  all  the 
vigor  of  a  somewhat  picturesque  vocabulary, 
and  threatening  to  go  to  court  himself  and 
have  every  scoundrel  in  the  party  indicted. 

Indeed,  more  than  once  he  found  some  of 
the  perpetrators  as  he  believed,  and  gave  his 
opinion  of  their  act  in  such  forcible  terms 


148  ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

that  they  slunk  away  with  blanched  faces. 
Pokeberry,  he  publicly  affirmed,  ought  to  be 
hung,  and  he  openly  prophesied  that  he  would 
be,  only  expressing  his  fear  that  some  un 
toward  accident  might  cheat  the  gallows  out 
of  its  due. 

The  old  gentleman  was  at  heart  intensely 
pleased  at  Bruce's  rescue  of  his  neighbors, 
and  behind  his  back  referred  to  his  cour 
age  and  decision  as  having  held  at  bay  a 
large  mob  and  as  having  been  worthy  of  a 
Landon.  This,  however,  did  not  prevent 
him  from  being  very  scornful  to  Bruce  him 
self  about  his  sudden  appearance  at  "old 
Browne's  "  and  his  engaging  in  a  disreputable 
brawl,  when,  not  long  subsequently,  he  found 
Bruce,  one  afternoon,  with  his  arm  still  in  a 
sling,  returning  from  that  side  of  the  stream, 
without  even  the  time-worn  excuse  of  a 
fishing-rod.  He  flung  a  caustic  gibe  at  him 
about  engaging  in  permanent  rivalry  with 
his  friend  Pokeberry.  Bruce's  face,  which 
had  flushed  with  self-consciousness  on  coming 
unexpectedly  on  his  father,  turned  a  sudden 
white.  He  was  in  no  mood  for  jesting ;  for 
he  had  been  waiting  and  watching  in  vain  all 
the  long  afternoon  in  the  hope  of  catching  a 


ON  NEWFOUND  RIVEE.  149 

glimpse  of  the  face  which  now  never  left  his 
mind  during  his  waking  hours.  He  started 
to  reply ;  but  by  a  strong  effort  controlled 
himself,  and,  turning  away,  walked  home. 

The  major,  on  reaching  the  house,  sought 
his  wife  and  held  a  long  interview  with  her. 
He  would  as  soon  not  have  confessed  his 
shortcomings  to  the  Deity  as  to  his  wife. 
As  a  result  of  this  conference  he,  after  tea, 
sent  for  Bruce,  and  had  a  short  interview  with 
him.  It  began  inauspiciously ;  for  both  were 
heated  at  the  start.  In  the  first  place,  Bruce 
knocked  at  the  door  of  the  library,  where 
his  father  was.  This  offended  the  old  gen 
tleman,  who  was  in  a  mood  in  which  he 
might  have  been  offended  if  he  had  not 
knocked. 

"  You  are  formal,"  he  said  coldly,  as  the 
young  man  entered,  and  remained  standing. 

"I  thought  it  was  a  formal  interview  to 
which  I  was  invited,  sir,"  said  Bruce,  with 
marked  dignity. 

"It  depends  upon  you,"  said  the  major. 
"  Take  a  seat ;  I  wish  to  speak  to  you." 

He  came  to  the  point  quickly. 

"Bruce,"  he  said,  "I  want  you  to  go 
abroad." 


150  ON  NEWFOUND  RtVER. 

The  young  man  started.  Go  abroad,  and 
never  see  Margaret  Reid  again  ! 

His  father  continued : 

"  I  want  you  to  go  abroad  at  once.  I  will 
give  you  all  the  money  you  wish  to  spend, 
and  you  can  be  as  independent  as  you  please. 
You  already  have  many  pleasant  acquaint 
ances  in  England  and  France ;  and  I  feel 
sure  that  I  can  secure  for  you  a  position  as 
secretary  with  one  of  the  legations,  —  per 
haps  in  one  of  those  countries.  It  will  fur 
nish  you  something  to  do,  and  give  you 
official  position." 

He  ended,  and  looked  at  Bruce  hopefully. 
He  had  got  through  better  than  he  had 
expected. 

"I  am  very  much  obliged  to  you,"  said 
Bruce,  with  great  urbanity.  "But  I  don't 
want  to  go." 

The  major's  calm  forsook  him. 

"  Well,  sir,  I  order  you  to  go." 

"  May  I  ask,  sir,  why  you  propose  to  take 
me  up  and  banish  me  like  an  exile  ?  Why 
not  shut  me  up  on  a  lettre  de  cachet?"  in 
quired  the  young  man. 

"  Yes,  sir,  you  may.  It  is  because  you  are 
throwing  away  your  life  in  an  idle,  worthless 


ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER.  151 

fashion ;  associating  with  people  who  are  not 
fit  associates  for  a  gentleman;  consorting 
with  an  unknown  young  woman ;  making 
yourself  the  talk  of  the  country,  and  drag 
ging  your  name,  which  is  an  honorable  one, 
into  the  vulgar  gossip  at  every  Crossroads 
groggery  in  the  neighborhood!"  His  sen 
tences  were  shot  out  one  after  the  other. 

Bruce  sprang  to  his  feet. 

"  It  is  not  true,"  he  said  angrily ;  then 
qualified  it.  "  You  are  not  speaking  of  your 
own  knowledge  ;  and  whoever  has  informed 
you  has  said  what  is  false.  Miss  Reid  is  a 
lady- 

"  No%so,  sir,"  retorted  the  major.  "  It  is 
true,  and  I  do  speak  of  my  own  knowledge  : 
even  the  negroes  are  talking  about  it.  It  is 
a  disgrace  ;  and  whether  you  go  to  Europe  or 
not,  I  forbid  you  ever  to  go  again  to  that 
place.  You  cannot  be  going  to  marry  the 
young  woman,  and  I  will  not  stand  any  dis 
grace.  If  I  hear  of  you  doing  anything  dis 
graceful  I  will  cut  you  off  with  a  shilling. 
What  is  more,  I  will  not  have  my  name 
dragged  into  the  mire  of  low  scandal-mon- 
gering,  and  if  you  go  again,  you  go  at  your 
peril."  He  turned  to  leave. 


152  ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

Bruce's  face  turned  white. 

"  You  do  not  know  what  you  are  talking 
about.  I  am  a  gentleman." 

The  major  made  a  gesture. 

"I  refuse  to  be  dictated  to  as  if  I  were  a 
negro,"  said  the  young  man.  "  I  will  go 
wherever  and  whenever  I  please." 

"  At  your  peril." 

The  major,  without  awaiting  his  answer,  left 
the  room,  leaving  him  to  reflect  on  his  words. 

The  next  morning  the  major  mounted  his 
horse  and  rode  down  upon  the  river,  with  an 
expression  on  his  face  which  bespoke  some 
thing  extraordinary.  He  was  dressed  in 
immaculate  linen  from  throat  to  hfcl,  and 
carried  a  light  umbrella.  His  face  above  his 
high  collar  was  unusually  severe.  Every 
thing  that  he  saw  was  wrong.  His  overseer 
told  him  "  that  fellow  Dick  Runaway  "  had 
gone  off  again  the  night  before,  the  second 
time  in  three  months.  He  "  ought  to  sell 
him;  he  could  not  do  anything  with  him." 
He  "believed  that  old  man  over  across  the 
pond  hired  him  to  take  care  of  his  cows ; 
knew  he  harbored  him."  The  major  was 
inclined  to  believe  so  too,  but  scouted  the 
notion  to  the  overseer.  He  was  not  agreeing 


ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER.  153 

with  any  one  just  then.  However,  he  vowed 
he  would  not  stand  Dick  any  longer.  He 
would  not  have  a  runaway  negro.  He  would 
sell  him  as  soon  as  he  was  caught. 

The  overseer  was  so  elated  that  he  made  a 
slip.  He  didn't  know  anybody  who  could 
catch  him  except  Pokeberry;  should  he  tell 
Pokeberry  to  go  after  him  ? 

The  mention  of  Pokeberry  touched  the 
major  into  flame. 

Pokeberry !  that  scoundrel !  No ;  he  hoped 
if  he  went  after  Dick,  Dick  would  kill  him ; 
he  would  spend  every  dollar  of  his  estate  de 
fending  him  if  he  did.  He  would  rather  never 
have  Dick  back,  rather  lose  every  negro  on  his 
place,  than  have  that  ruffian  to  go  after  him. 

He  left  the  overseer  speechless  and  over 
whelmed. 

After  finding  fault  with  everything  he  saw, 
he  rode  up  the  river,  through  the  woods.  It 
was  spring,  and  the  trees  were  fresh  and 
tender,  their  varied  tints  looking  in  the  land 
scape  like  vast  flowers.  The  old  road,  so 
long  unused,  was  in  many  places  grown  up 
in  bushes,  the  leafy  limbs  meeting  across  the 
path,  so  that  the  major,  to  pass  under  them, 
had  frequently  to  lean  down  on  his  bay 


154  ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

horse's  neck.  Still  he  pushed  on,  and  it  was 
only  when  he  came  to  the  narrow  ford  across 
the  stream  at  the  head  of  the  pond  that  he 
paused. 

There  he  stopped,  irresolute.  The  old  car 
riage-way  down  to  the  stream  on  his  side  and 
up  on  the  other  had  been  washed  into  two 
cuts ;  but  they  were  covered  with  old  leaves, 
and  a  spreading  dogwood  filled  with  snowy 
bloom  was  growing  right  in  the  middle  of 
the  cut.  The  major  looked  across.  He  had 
not  passed  that  boundary  for  fifteen  years. 
On  the  other  side,  the  track  was  even  less  dis 
tinct  than  on  his  ;  for  young  pines  were  grow 
ing  up  in  it.  lie  looked  beyond  the  stream, 
and  then,  as  if  undecided,  glanced  back  in 
the  direction  from  which  he  had  come.  Sud 
denly  he  tightened  the  rein,  and  giving  the 
hesitating  horse  the  whip,  rode  down  to  the 
water,  went  floundering  through  the  narrow, 
miry  stream,  and  pushed  on  up  the  long-un 
used  track.  The  struggle  that  it  had  cost 
to  bring  him  across  had  brought  a  cloud  on 
the  major's  face ;  his  brows  were  knit,  and 
now,  as  he  walked  his  horse  along,  his  look 
was  grim  enough.  To  think  that  this  was 
the  home  of  his  fathers,  the  cradle  of  his 


ON  NEWFOUND   RIVER.  155 

race ;  held  by  an  alien ;  allowed  to  grow  up 
in  a  wilderness ;  worse  than  any  poor  white's 
place !  It  was  enough  to  make  his  father 
turn  in  his  grave.  Why,  those  blackguards 
were  right,  —  were  almost  right,  —  had  some 
excuse  for  trying  to  drive  him  off.  If  he 
were  not  an  abolitionist,  he  was  worse.  And 
to  think  of  his  son  stooping  to  be  in  love 
with  this  man's  granddaughter !  It  was  a  dis 
grace  !  He  could  not  sustain  the  thought  of  it. 
He  would  cut  him  off  with  a  shilling  if  he 
ever  set  foot  on  the  place  again.  Things 
had  gone  too  far.  He  would  stand  no  more ! 
Pines  everywhere.  He  would  see  the  crea 
ture  and  settle  the  matter  for  good  and  all. 
She  would  hardly  fail  to  accede  to  his  wishes  ; 
few  could.  If  she  did,  —  if  she  was  brazen, 
why,  he  would  buy  her  off. 

He  passed  over  the  hill  through  pines  all 
the  way,  and  beyond  where  the  fence  used  to 
be.  It  was  all  rotted  now,  and  he  rode  on 
through  the  thicket  towards  the  house.  Just 
as  he  arrived  in  sight  of  an  opening  some 
distance  ahead,  which  he  knew  must  be  the 
yard,  he  came  in  view  of  some  one  walking 
along  the  path  before  him,  —  a  young  woman. 
A  large  straw  hat  concealed  her  head,  and 


156  O.V  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

she  carried  a  basket  on  her  arm.  She  was 
tall  and  evidently  young,  and  it  occurred  to 
the  major,  as  he  did  not  know  her,  that  she 
was  some  visitor.  Hearing  his  horse,  she 
turned  hastily  and  looked  back,  but  was  too 
far  distant  for  him  to  see  her  face ;  then  she 
quickened  her  step.  The  major,  wishing  to 
get  her  to  bear  a  message,  pushed  his  horse 
to  a  trot  to  overtake  her.  He  came  up  to 
her  just  as  she  reached  the  rude  "  bars "  of 
small  unbarked  pine  poles,  which,  to  keep 
the  cows  in,  were  thrown  across  the  road 
between  the  two  old  gate-posts  which  had 
once  formed  the  entrance  to  the  yard. 

"  I  say,  —  good  morning,"  said  the  major, 
sitting  in  an  easy  posture  on  his  handsome 
bay  and  gazing  ahead  at  the  old  house  which 
could  just  be  seen  through  the  trees.  He 
did  not  even  look  at  her. 

"  Can  you  take  a  message  for  me  to  the 
3roung  woman  in  there,  —  Dr.  Browne's  grand 
daughter,  Miss  Browne,  or  whatever  her  name 
is?" 

"  I  am  Dr.  Browne's  granddaughter,"  said 
the  young  woman,  in  a  placid,  melodious  voice, 
turning  up  to  him  a  face  a  little  flushed  with 
the  excitement  of  the  unexpected  meeting; 


ON  NEWFOUND  EIVER.  157 

but  with  calm,  dark  eyes  under  straight  black 
brows,  and  with  a  certain  look  which  the 
major  thought  of  afterwards  and  which  made 
him  forget  all  else. 

"  Oh  !  ah  !  ah  !  You  don't  say  so !  I  beg 
your  pardon,  I'm  sure,"  he  began,  and  before 
he  knew  it  he  had  dismounted  and  was  stand 
ing  down  on  the  ground  with  his  hat  in  his 
hand. 

How  awkward  it  was,  and  how  like  a  fool 
he  felt !  Why,  she  was  a  beauty  and  quite  a 
lady.  What  the  deuce  should  he  say ! 

"It  is  a  very  fine  day  —  ah!"  he  began, 
wishing  himself  at  home,  or  in  perdition,  or 
anywhere  but  where  he  was. 

"Yes,  I  have  been  enjoying  it,"  she  said 
placidly,  looking  him  full  in  the  eyes,  her  face 
a  little  lifted  and  slightly  flushed,  her  eyes 
wide,  and  her  lips  the  least  bit  compressed. 

How  melodious  her  voice  was  !  Quite  like 
a  lady's  voice,  thought  the  major.  He  made  a 
remark  about  the  flowers  she  had  in  her  bas 
ket,  rather  to  gain  time  and  avoid  coming  to 
the  point  than  because  they  pleased  him  par 
ticularly.  He  was  embarrassed  by  finding  her 
so  different  from  what  he  expected,  so  self- 
possessed,  and  undeniably  beautiful. 


158  ON  NEWFOUND  EIVER. 

"  Yes  ?  "  with  a  rising  inflection.  She 
looked  down  at  them  gravely,  and  reaching 
her  hand  around  instinctively  arranged  them 
in  the  basket.  Then  she  looked  at  him  in 
quiringly. 

There  was  no  hope  for  it ;  he  must  go  on. 

"I  —  I  — .  If  you  will  allow  me,  I  will  put 
on  my  hat ;  the  sun  is  a  little  warm,"  he  said, 
paltering. 

She  bowed, 

"  Certainly." 

"I  —  I  — I  came  to  speak  to  you  about  my 
son,"  began  the  major,  and  paused. 

Her  face  flushed  a  little,  and  she  drew  in 
her  breath  in  a  startled  way,  the  lips  growing 
just  a  shade  more  compressed. 

He  looked  away,  and  then  growing  angry 
with  himself,  began  rapidly, 

"  I  want  to  say  something  to  you  about  my 
son,  Mr.  Bruce  Landon?" 

There  was  a  shade  of  interrogation  in  his 
tone,  and  she  bowed  slightly  to  show  that 
she  understood  him.  She  was  standing  very 
straight. 

"  My  son  is  —  is  a  gentleman  -  He 
paused,  abashed  at  his  speech. 

"  Damnably  unlike  his  father  on  this  pres- 


ON  NEWFOUND  EIVER.  159 

ent  occasion,"  he  thought  suddenly,  almost 
amused  at  the  reflection.  Then  he  added 
in  a  softer  tone, 

"  He  is  my  only  son,  and  —  I  —  I  have 
plans  for  him,  and  I  wanted—  He  paused. 

"  Yes?"  she  bowed  inquiringly,  still  looking 
him  full  in  the  face  with  that  embarrassing, 
unflinching  gaze  from  her  eyes. 

"  I  don't  want  you  to  marry  him,"  blurted 
out  the  major,  desperately. 

"Neither  do  I.  You  need  have  no  fear; 
I  have  no  idea  of  marrying  him,"  she  said 
quietly,  never  taking  her  eyes  from  his  face. 
Her  head  straightened  on  her  shoulders  just 
a  little. 

The  major  almost  staggered.  She  refuse 
Bruce  !  His  son  !  Impossible  ! 

"  He  is  my  only  son,  and  I  have  made  plans 
for  him,"  explained  the  major  again  lamely, 
in  impotent  contempt  for  himself. 

"I  will  not  prevent  your  carrying  them 
out,"  she  said,  raising  her  head  perceptibly, 
and  standing  more  erect  than  she  had  done. 
"  I  will  never  marry  him." 

"  You  are  far  too  good  for  him,"  he  began, 
feeling  that  some  amend  was  to  be  made  her. 
"I  regret  having  to  say  what  I  have  done  — " 


1GO  ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

he  was  going  on ;  but  the  girl  drew  herself 
up,  and,  without  taking  her  eyes  from  his 
face,  said, 

"You  know  nothing  about  me."  Then  as 
the  major  paused  abashed,  added,  still  in  the 
same  modulated  voice, 

"Is  that  all?" 

"  Yes,"  said  the  major,  in  a  crestfallen  tone, 
gathering  up  his  bridle-reins. 

"I  am  sorry—  "  he  began,  but  again  her 
look  stopped  him.  He  dared  not  apologize. 

She  backed  slightly  away.  It  might  have 
been  to  get  out  of  the  reach  of  his  horse  ;  but 
it  seemed  to  the  major  as  if  a  queen  were  end 
ing  an  audience. 

"  Good  by.  I  am  very  much  obliged  to  you," 
said  the  old  gentleman,  in  a  rather  subdued 
tone,  putting  on  his  hat  and  turning  to  mount. 

"  Good  day."  She  turned  and  walked  slowly 
towards  the  house. 

The  major  rode  off  at  a  gallop,  feeling  more 
contempt  for  himself  than  he  ever  had  done 
in  his  life. 

Who  was  she  like? 


CHAPTER   XVI. 

THE  major  had  pulled  in  his  horse  and  was 
riding  through  the  pines  in  deep  reflection, 
when  a  large  man  stepped  suddenly  out  of 
the  thick  growth  beside  the  way  into  the 
narrow  path  just  before  him,  facing  him. 
The  sudden  apparition  caused  the  spirited 
horse  that  the  major  rode  to  bound  and  half 
wheel  around ;  but  the  practised  hand  on  the 
bridle  brought  him  back.  It  was  Pokeberry 
Green,  and  as  usual  he  carried  his  long, 
double-barrelled  gun  in  the  hollow  of  his 
left  arm.  He  stood,  glowering,  right  in  the 
middle  of  the  road. 

The  major's  anger  rose. 

"  What  do  you  mean,  sir,  by  jumping  out 
of  the  bushes  in  that  manner  in  front  of  a 
gentleman's  horse?  Have  you  no  sense  left? 
Get  out  of  the  way,  and  let  me  come  by." 

"  I  want  to  see  you,"  growled  Pokeberry. 

"  Well,  it's  more  than  I  do  you.  What  do 
you  want  to  see  me  about?" 

161 


162  ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

"  I  hear,"  he  began  angrily,  "  that  you  said 
I  was  in  that  mob  that  went  tother  night  to 
old  man  Browne's  and  broke  in  his  house  ?  " 
His  manner  was  very  threatening,  and  he 
looked  thoroughly  dangerous. 

"Well,  you  heard  right,"  said  the  major, 
boldly;  "I  did  say  so.  And  I  said  further 
more  that  you  ought  to  be  prosecuted  and 
sent  to  the  penitentiary,  and  I  will  have  it 
done  if  you  don't  look  out.  It's  an  outrage 
that  such  a  scoundrel  should  be  allowed  to 
run  free.  You  are  a  disgrace  to  the  neigh 
borhood." 

The  man  with  an  angry  oath  suddenly 
cocked  his  gun,  and,  flinging  it  a  little  for 
ward,  started  to  raise  it. 

If  the  major  had  quailed  ever  so  little, 
murder  would  have  been  done  on  the  spot. 
But  he  did  not.  The  menacing  act  of  the 
ruffian  simply  enraged  him.  Intrepidly  push 
ing  his  frightened  horse  closer  up  to  him,  he 
raised  his  whip. 

"  Lower  that  gun  instantly,  you  scoundrel ! " 
he  said.  "  Do  you  think  I  am  to  be  threat 
ened  ?  If  you  dare  to  assault  me  in  this  way, 
I'll  have  you  tied  to  a  tree  and  thrashed 
within  an  inch  of  your  life." 


ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER.  163 

The  absolute  fearlessness  of  the  old  gentle 
man,  and  his  imperious  anger,  overwhelmed 
the  ruffian.  His  eyes  quailed  and  fell,  and, 
dropping  his  gun,  he  stepped  back  out  of  the 
way. 

"I  ain'  threatenin'  nobody,"  he  half  growled, 
half  whined.  "I  been  squirrel-huntin',  an'  I 
jes'  wanted  to  tell  you  I  didn'  had  nothin'  to 
do  with  that  there  thing  tother  night.  I'll 
swar  on  a  stack  of  Bibles  I  didn',  and  I  can 
prove  it  by  a  hundred  witnesses.  I  hope  I 
may  die  on  the  spot  if  I  wan'  home  sleep  by 
sundown.  I  was  home  drunk  that  evening," 
he  added  corroboratively. 

"  I  have  no  doubt  that  you  can  prove  it  by 
the  other  scoundrels  who  were  there,"  said 
the  implacable  major,  "who  will  quite  will 
ingly  swear  to  that  or  any  other  invention 
you  may  suggest ;  but  if  you  expect  to  get 
off  by  that,  I  tell  you  now  that  you  are  mis 
taken.  There  is  some  law  left  in  the  land,  I 
hope ;  and  unless  you  find  it  so,  my  name  is 
not  Landon." 

So  saying,  he  passed  on,  leaving  the  crest 
fallen  and  subdued  Pokeberry  cursing  him 
under  his  breath,  and  looking  dangerously  at 
his  black  gun-barrels. 


164  ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

He  had  not  gone  over  a  quarter  of  a  mile 
further,  and  had  not  quite  readied  the  river, 
when  his  horse  again  started  and  shied  in  the 
narrow  track.  The  major  angrily  faced  him 
towards  the  point  from  which  he  had  veered, 
thinking,  perhaps,  that  Pokeberry  had  inter 
cepted  him.  With  pointed  ears  and  high 
head  the  horse  backed  awray.  His  master 
looked  earnestly  into  the  woods. 

"Walk  out  from  behind  that  tree,  and 
come  here ! "  he  suddenly  called  sternly,  to  an 
invisible  person. 

Finding  himself  discovered,  a  negro  stepped 
out,  and  came  slowly  and  humbly  towards 
him.  He  was  apparently  about  thirty  years 
of  age,  tall  and  strongly  built,  and  very  black. 

"  My  marster,"  he  said. 

The  major  pitched  into  him  with  volubility. 
Dick's  spirits  rose  ;  for  it  was  Dick  Runaway 
himself.  He  recognized  in  his  master's  man 
ner  a  by  no  means  dangerous  mood.  It  was 
when  he  was  stern  and  silent  that  he  was  to 
be  feared. 

"What  do  you  run  away  for?"  finally  de 
manded  the  major.  "Do  you  think  that  I 
have  nothing  to  do  but  support  a  worthless, 
runaway  vagabond,  who  lives  half  his  time 


ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER.  165 

in  the  woods  ?  I  believe  that  you  have  lived 
half  your  life  in  the  woods.  What  did  you 
run  away  for  this  time  ?  " 

The  negro  stood  looking  down  on  the 
ground  in  some  embarrassment.  Suddenly 
he  broke  off  a  long,  stout  dogwood  switcli 
from  a  thick  clump  of  bushes  which  grew 
beside  the  path,  and  stripped  it  of  its  leaves. 

"  Here,  marster,  whip  me,"  he  said,  pushing 
it  into  his  hand,  and  pulling  off  his  coat. 

The  major  gave  him  an  impatient  cut  with 
the  switch,  as  he  might  have  given  his  shying 
horse,  and  flung  it  away. 

"  Do  you  suppose  I  want  to  be  soiling  my 
hands  whipping  a  worthless  rascal  ?  What  I 
want  to  know  is,  what  made  you  run  away  ? 
You  are  free  enough  at  home,  Heaven  knows ; 
lazy  enough,  anyhow;  it  breaks  me  to  keep 
you  worthless  rascals." 

He  paused  and  waited,  with  his  eye  on  the 
darkey,  as  if  expecting  a  reply. 

"  What  was  it  ?  sheer  worthlessness  ?  " 

"Nor,  suh,  'twant.  Dat  man  say  he  was 
gwine  meek  you  sell  me,"  said  Dick,  doubtfully. 

"  Make  me  sell  you  ?     What  man  ?  " 

" Dat  po'  white  man—  Mist'  Bailiff."  The 
negro's  sovereign  contempt  was  in  his  tone. 


1G6  ON  NEWFOUND  EIVER. 

"  Don't  you  let  me  hear  you  speak  of  my 
overseer  that  way,  sir,"  said  the  major ;  but 
he  did  not  look  offended.  Perhaps  he  was 
secretly  a  little  pleased.  The  negro  recog 
nized  him  as  his  natural  and  rightful  chief, 
and  looked  on  the  other  with  unfeigned  dis 
dain. 

"  Make  me  sell  you?"  he  repeated.  "Who 
ever  made  me  do  anything?  If  he  could 
have  made  me  sell  you,  I'd  have  sold  you 
long  ago,  for  you  are  not  worth  keeping. 
Come  along  home  with  me  this  minute." 
He  rode  on,  the  negro  following. 

He  was  walking  behind,  and  could  have 
easily  enough  slipped  off  into  the  woods  and 
have  escaped ;  but  he  did  not  attempt  it. 
His  master's  will  controlled  him,  as  an  officer 
controls  a  soldier  in  battle.  Indeed,  as  he 
followed  him,  his  whole  manner  had  changed. 
The  look  of  doubt  and  difficulty  had  disap 
peared  from  his  face,  and  he  even  grinned  to 
himself  every  now  and  then. 

When  they  had  crossed  the  river  to  their 
own  side,  and  come  in  sight  of  the  fields 
through  the  woods,  the  major  stopped. 

"You'd  better  go  back  by  yourself,"  he 
said;  "it  will  be  better  for  you.  If  you 


ON  NEWFOUND  EIVER.  167 

come  with  me,  they  will  think  I  brought  you 
back.  Go  that  way."  He  pointed  through 
the  woods  in  a  direction  at  right  angles  to 
the  road  they  were  in. 

The  negro  hesitated,  and  made  a  gesture 
of  embarrassment. 

"  Marster  —  " 

"  If  the  overseer  says  anything  to  you,  tell 
him  I  told  you  to  say  he  was  to  come  to  see 
me."  The  major  thought  that  was  his  doubt. 

"  Nor,  suh,  'tain'  dat,"  explained  the  darkey. 
"Dat  feller  Pokeberry,  —  Pokeberry  Green, 
dat  nigger-hunter  —  "  He  paused. 

"  Well,  what  about  him  ?  "  demanded  the 
major. 

"  He's  a  bad  feller !  "  he  said  earnestly. 

"I  have  no  doubt  you  think  so,"  the  major 
said  dryly,  with  a  quizzical  look  in  his  eyes. 

The  negro  missed  the  point. 

"  He  got  meanness  in  him  !  "  he  said.  "  He 
got  he  mine  set  for  you  and  Marse  Bruce, 
too;  and  for  dem  folks  over  yonder,  too." 
He  indicated  Dr.  Browne's  place,  across  the 
river.  "  He  got  meanness  in  him  !  " 

"  Here,  how  do  you  know  this  ?  "  the  major 
demanded. 

The  negro  paused. 


168  ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

"I  heah  him  say  so.  I  been  up  to  he 
house." 

"  Been  up  to  his  house  ?  " 

"  Yes,  suh ;  I  crope  up  dyah  tother  night, 
and  hearn  him  tellin'  another  man  all  about 
hit." 

"  I  thought  he  had  dogs  ?  "  said  the  major. 

"  Dem  ar  little  houn's ! "  said  the  negro,  dis 
dainfully.  "I  don'  mind  dem  no  mo'  'n  I 
does  mices.  I  done  meek  friends  wid  'em," 
he  said,  with  a  shrewd  gleam  in  his  eyes. 

The  major  looked  amused. 

"Well?" 

"I  hearn  him  say,"  the  negro  proceeded, 
"dat  he  was  gwine  long  back  whar  he  come 
f 'om ;  dat  he  was  tired  o'  livin'  down  heah ; 
he  could  go  back  dyah  now,  he  said,  'cus  ev'y- 
body  is  done  dead  whar  knowed  him.  But 
b'fo'  he  go,  he  said,  he  was  gwine  4lef  he 
mark  behine  him,'  and  he  name  dem  he 
gwine  lef  he  mark  on." 

The  fellow's  seriousness  testified  his  truth, 
and  the  major  listened  attentively. 

uHe  say  he  gwine  lef  he  mark  on  you, 
marster,  and  Marse  Bruce,  an'  on  dat  ole  man  " 
(again  indicating  the  direction  beyond  the 
stream),  "and  de  young  lady  over  dyah  He 


ON  NEWFOUND  EIVEE.  169 

said  he  could  ketch  her,  and  sometimes  when 
she  was  out  in  de  woods  he  was  gwine  fine 
her ;  an'  Marse  Bruce,  he  said  he'd  git  him  ef 
he  hang  for  it.  Dat  man's  got  meanness  in 
him !  "  he  said  again. 

"  You  heard  him  say  all  this  ? "  said  the 
major,  thoughtfully. 

"Yes,  suh;  an'  a  heap  mo',  too.  I  been 
know  him  some  time."  He  gave  a  quick  glance 
at  his  master.  "  I  been  know  him  ever  since 
dat  time  he  cotch  me  and  fotch  me  back  tied, 
an'  you  'buse  him  so."  (The  major  looked 
virtuous.)  "  He  never  forgive  you  for  dat," 
proceeded  the  negro.  "He  meet  me  once 
arter  dat,  an'  ax  me  didn'  I  warn'  run  away 
for  good.  He  say  whar  he  come  f'om  de 
niggers  was  all  free,  and  had  big  house  and 
mule  like  white  folks,  and  ef  I'd  come  wid 
him,  he  could  git  me  dyah ;  dat  we  could 
slip  off  some  night,  and  go  like  I  b'longst 
to  him,  tell  we  git  whar  he  live,  or  somewhar 
or  nother." 

"  Ah !     Well,  and  —  what  ?  " 

"  I  tell  him,  Nor,  I  run  away  enough  now. 
I  don'  warn'  be  no  free  nigger.  I  know  I  ain' 
gwine  meek  out  I  b'longst  to  him,"  he  said, 
with  contempt ;  "  not  to  dat  mean,  po'  white 


170  ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

man."  He  thought  of  the  time  he  had  caught 
and  tied  him,  and  of  the  other  occasion  when 
he  had  had  him  whipped ;  but  did  not  deem 
it  worth  while  to  recall  these  to  his  master. 
"  An'  it  good  I  clidn' ;  cause  dat  night  I  talkin' 
'bout,  I  heah  him  tellin'  dat  turr  man  I  ain' 
know,  'bout  how  he  had  try  to  git  me  to  go 
off  wid  him,  an'  ef  he  had,  he  wuz  gwine  teck 
me  down  to  South  Cyarliny  an'  sell  me.  He 
say  he  done  sole  too  or  three  down  dyah  in 
he  time,  an'  he  laughed  and  tried  to  git  de 
urr  man  to  go  in  wid  him.  Dat  man  got  mean 
ness  in  him ! " 

The  major  was  thoroughly  attentive. 

"  Was  that  all  you  heard  him  say  ?  " 

"Yes,  suh,  den,"  said  the  negro.  "I  got 
skeered  de  dogs  mought  git  to  barkin',  an' 
meek  him  let  he  gun  off  an'  put  he  mark 
on  me,  an'  I  slipped  off.  He  over  yonder  in 
de  woods  now."  He  nodded  over  towards 
the  other  side  of  the  stream.  "  I  don't 
know  ef  he  arter  Marse  Bruce  or  dat  young 
lady." 

"  Go  home,"  said  the  master,  "  and  don't 
say  anything  of  this  to  any  one." 

"Yes,  suh." 

He  went  off,  and  the  major  rode  on. 


ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER.  171 

On  the  way  through  the  fields  he  met  his 
overseer,  who,  unfortunately  for  him,  re 
curred  to  the  conversation  of  the  morning. 
The  major  broke  out  on  him  : 

"  Sell  one  of  my  negroes  ?  No,  sir !  I'd  as 
soon  think  of  selling  you.  I  don't  care  how 
often  the  fellow  runs  away.  He  must  have 
had  some  cause  I  don't  know  about.  I'd  have 
run  away,  too." 

This  was  a  deadly  thrust  at  the  overseer, 
who  looked  dumfounded,  and  with  much 
humility  said  something  about  the  major's 
speech  this  morning. 

"  Well,  sir,  I  never  had  the  least  intention 
of  it,"  he  said  truly.  "  I  thought  you  knew 
me  well  enough  by  this  time  to  be  able  to 
tell  when  I  mean  a  thing  and  when  I  do 
not." 

He  rode  on  to  the  house.  As  he  entered 
the  hall  his  eyes  fell  on  the  portrait  of  his 
grandmother  as  a  bride,  which  hung  on  the 
wall. 

"  By  Jove  !  how  like  her  she  is  ! "  he  said. 
"  She  looks  as  proud  as  she  was,  and  she  was 
the  proudest  woman  on  earth." 

At  that  moment  Margaret  Reid,  her  pride 
forgot,  was  seated  on  the  low  porch  with  her 


172  ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

head  on  her  arm,  where  she  had  flung  herself 
more  than  an  hour  before.  The  basket  of 
wild  flowers  she  had  gathered  was  overturned 
on  the  floor  beside  her,  and  the  flowers  lay 
wilting  in  the  sun. 


CHAPTER  XVII. 

WHEN  the  major  arrived  at  home,  the  first 
thing  he  did  was  to  consult  his  wife.  This 
he  always  did  whatever  the  matter  might  be, 
though  he  did  not  invariably  follow  her  ad 
vice, —  an  independence  he  atoned  for  by 
being  always  ready  to  admit  its  folly. 

As  he  came  out  of  the  audience  chamber, 
his  wife  called  after  him, 

"  Let  Dick  drive  them  over." 

The  major  gave  her  a  look  of  admiration 
as  he  passed  out  of  the  door. 

A  half-hour  later  Dick  Runaway  was  driv 
ing  out  of  the  gate  of  the  river  pasture  the 
two  finest  milch  cows  in  the  major's  herd. 
The  major  rode  down,  and  joining  him,  ac 
companied  him  to  the  other  side  of  the  river 
to  see  the  cows  safely  across.  As  he  turned 
back  he  called  to  the  negro, 

"Be  sure  to  remember,  you  are  not  to 
mention  who  sent  them." 

This  Dick  faithfully  engaged  not  to  do; 

173 


174  ON  NEWFOUND  E1VER. 

and  the  major  rode  slowly  home  as  he  saw 
him  start  the  cows  up  the  hill,  along  the  old 
road  through  the  pines. 

Just  as  he  emerged  from  the  woods  he  was 
met  by  Bailiff,  his  overseer,  in  a  state  of  great 
excitement.  A  negro  had  found  him  on  some 
other  portion  of  the  plantation,  and  told  him 
that  a  man  had  been  seen  down  in  the  river 
pasture  actually  driving  two  of  the  major's 
cattle  out  of  the  field.  He  was  thought  to 
be  Dick  Runaway.  He  was  following  on 
their  tracks  in  hot  haste. 

"You'd  better  sell  that  nigger,  sir,"  he 
said  earnestly.  "He's  ruinin'  every  one  on 
this  place." 

The  major  looked  quite  sheepish.  He  told 
the  overseer  with  much  embarrassment  that 
he  had  himself  directed  Dick  to  drive  the 
cows  over  to  a  neighbor's ;  that  Mrs.  Landon 
had  heard  his  family  was  very  poor,  and 
wished  to  relieve  them. 

It  was  this  same  day,  towards  the  after 
noon. 

Old  Dr.  Browne  was  sitting  alone  in  his 
room.  He  had  made  Margaret  get  him  pen, 
ink,  and  paper,  and  then  had  sent  her  out  to 
walk.  She  had  found  her  mammy  getting 


ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER.  175 

ready  to  go  after  the  cows ;  and  as  the  old 
woman  was  ailing  with  rheumatism,  which 
she  called  "  a  misery  in  her  back,"  had  told 
her  she  would  go  in  her  place,  and  with  an 
injunction  to  her  to  look  after  her  grand 
father,  had  gone  off  through  the  pines  down 
towards  the  pond  where  the  cows  usually 
roamed,  sustaining  themselves  on  the  coarse 
pond-grass. 

She  had  not  been  gone  long  when  the  old 
woman  coming  to  her  door  on  the  way  to  the 
house  to  fulfil  Margaret's  injunction,  saw  two 
cows  being  let  into  the  yard  at  the  old  gate 
by  a  negro  man. 

With  an  exclamation  of  astonishment  at 
the  strange  sight,  she  hastened  to  meet  the 
man  at  as  rapid  a  pace  as  her  lameness  per 
mitted. 

"Whose  cows  is  dem  you  got  dyah?  and 
what  you  drivin'  em  thoo  heah  for?  Don't 
you  know  marster  don't  'low  folks  to  be 
drivin'  stock  thoo  dis  place  ?  " 

She  spoke  with  some  asperity  in  her  voice. 
It  was  a  little  tempered  by  the  sight  of  the 
sleek  coats  and  large  milky  bags  of  the  cows, 
at  which  she  looked  with  the  eye  of  a  con 
noisseur. 


176  ON  NEWFOUND  HIVER. 

"  Good  evenin',"  said  the  man,  who 
was  Dick  Runaway.  "  Dey's  Dr.  Browne's 
cows." 

"  Dem  am'  we  cows,"  said  the  old  woman. 
"  We  ain'  got  but  two  cows,  an'  dee's  po'er'n 
dem." 

"  I  cyarn  help  it,"  said  Dick ;  "  dese  is  de 
doctor's." 

"Don't  I  know  my  own  cows?  Often  as  I 
been  milked  Teensey  and  Princess ! "  She 
looked  scornfully  at  him. 

"  'Pears  like  you  don't,"  said  he,  with  an 
air  of  mystery  about  him ;  "  'cuz  I  tell  you 
dese  is  Dr.  Browne's  cows." 

"  Whar  he  git  'em,  den  ?  "  she  asked,  rest 
ing  her  doubled  fists  on  her  hips. 

This  was  a  question  Dick  was  unprepared 
for.  He  remembered  the  major's  injunction 
that  he  was  on  no  account  to  say  a  word  as  to 
who  sent  them. 

"Whar  he  git  'em?"  he  asked  vacantly, 
to  gain  time  whilst  he  hunted  around  for 
a  plausible  lie.  "  Whar  he  git  'em  ?  What 
you  got  to  do  wid  whar  he  git  'em  ?  I  tell 
you  he  got  'em.  Ain'  dat  'nough  for  you  to 
know?  You  better  go  'long  an'  git  bucket 
to  milk  'em,  cause  milk  running  out  de  bags 


ON  NEWFOUND  EIVER.  177 

right  now.  You  am'  never  see  no  sich  cows 
as  dese  befo' !  "  He  could  not  help  indulging 
in  a  little  bragging,  and  was  congratulating 
himself  on  his  reply. 

"I  believe  you'se  done  stolt  dem  cows, 
and  jes'  tryin'  to  lef '  em  heah  to  git  youself 
out  o'  trouble,  an  git  we  in,"  said  the  old  lady, 
suspiciously. 

This  completely  disarranged  Dick's  plans 
and  disposed  of  his  complacency.  He  vowed, 
with  many  asseverations,  that  he  had  not  only 
come  by  the  cattle  honestly,  but  had  been  in 
structed  by  his  master  to  bring  them  as  a 
present  to  Dr.  Browne;  and  he  was  led 
into  such  a  glowing  description  of  his  mas 
ter's  wealth  and  grandeur,  that  before  he 
was  half  through,  the  old  woman  had  learned 
fully  all  the  facts  in  the  case. 

She  asked  if  he  had  brought  a  note.  Dick, 
thoroughly  humbled,  said  he  had  not.  So 
with  a  sniff  at  him  and  his  master  she 
accepted  the  cows  without  the  note,  and 
made  Dick  drive  them  down  to  the  "back 
yard." 

There  she  dismissed  him,  with  a  message  of 
thanks,  couched  in  such  language  and  accom 
panied  by  an  air  of  so  much  condescension, 


178  ON  XEWFOUXD  RIVER. 

that  Dick  left  with  a  mystified  feeling,  partly 
astonishment,  and  partly  awe. 

"  Dat  ain'  no  po'  white  folks'  nigger,"  he 
said  to  himself  again  and  again,  as  he  went 
home.  "  She  talk  jes'  as  assumptions  as  ef 
she  b'longst  to  marster." 

When  the  old  woman  had  seen  Dick  well 
out  of  sight  her  whole  manner  changed.  In 
place  of  the  indifference  she  had  displayed 
before  him,  delight  beamed  from  her  wrinkled 
black  face,  and  importance  showed  in  every 
movement  she  made. 

After  she  had  first  secured  and  made  friends 
with  the  two  cows,  and  milked  them  a  little 
to  satisfy  herself,  she  went  into  the  house  to 
acquaint  her  master  with  the  important  news. 
Her  eager  manner,  however,  was  put  off,  like 
a  garment,  at  his  door,  and  when  she  entered 
his  chamber  she  was  as  quiet,  and  apparently 
as  calm,  as  usual. 

The  old  gentleman  was  lying  back  in  his 
chair,  with  his  eyes  closed.  His  pen  was  in 
his  hand  and  his  paper  was  on  his  knee.  She 
thought  he  was  asleep,  and  was  retiring,  when 
he  spoke  her  name. 

"Clarissa?" 

"Sir?" 


ON  NEWFOUND  E1VEE.  179 

"Come  here." 

She  obeyed,  and  stood  silent  near  his  chair. 

"  Where  is  your  mistress  ?  "  he  asked. 

"  She  gone  arter  de  cows.  She  would  go, 
suh ;  I  couldn'  Lender  her." 

He  closed  his  eyes  again  and  kept  them 
shut.  She  remained  motionless. 

"  That  young  man,  —  ah  —  young  Mr.  Lan- 
don,  over  the  other  side  of  the  river,  —  ah  — 
you  have  seen  him  over  on  this  side  ?  " 

"  Yes,  suh." 

"Ah!  How  often?"  He  put  the  ques 
tions  very  slowly,  and  as  if  they  fell  between 
his  thoughts. 

"  I  ain'  never  see  him  but  once,  suh,  not  to 
speak  to,"  she  said ;  "  but  he  comes  over  heah 
right  constant.  He  'pears  to  be  mighty  foil' 
o'  fishing  over  heah,  dthough  I  don'  think  he 
ketches  much." 

"  What  sort  of  a  young  man  —  ah  —  what 
does  he  seem  to  be  doing  when  he  isn't  catch 
ing  fish?" 

"  He  'pears  to  me,  marster,  to  be  kind  o' 
trompin'  up  an'  down.  He  ain'  arter  fish, 
marster;  he's  arter  my  mistis,  my  lamb,"  she 
broke  out  suddenly. 

Her  master  made  no  reply,  but  he  opened 


180  OJV  NEWFOUND   RIVER. 

his  eyes  and  looked  at  her  without  moving. 
Her  tongue  being  loosed,  she  went  on  to  tell 
him  all  she  knew  of  Bruce,  who  she  declared 
appeared  to  her  to  be  "  a  mighty  nice  disposed 
gent'man."  She  instanced  his  going  to  drive 
the  cows  back  the  day  they  went  across  the 
river. 

"  I  am  getting  very  old  and  feeble,"  said 
her  master,  when  she  paused  after  her  ac 
count.  "  I  think  I  shall  write  a  will.  I  had 
not  intended  to  do  so,  but  I  think  now  I  shall. 
I  wish  you  to  know  where  it  is  if  anything 
should  happen." 

She  said, 

"  Yes,  suh." 

Then  she  proceeded  to  tell  of  the  present 
of  the  two  cows,  which  she  attributed  to 
Bruce. 

This  piece  of  news  had  a  very  different 
effect  on  the  old  gentleman  from  that  which 
she  expected.  It  threw  him  into  a  violent 
passion.  He  declared  that  he  would  not  sub 
mit  to  such  insolence,  and  directed  that  the 
cows  should  be  forthwith  driven  home.  He 
would  write  a  note.  No ;  no  note  had  been 
sent  with  them  ;  none  should  go  back  with 
them,  but  a  message  to  Major  Landon  to  say 


ON  NEWFOUND  EIVER.  181 

that  he  had  cows  of  his  own,  and  wanted 
neither  his  cows  nor  his  interference. 

The  cows  accordingly  reappeared  that  even 
ing  at  the  Landon  Hall  barn,  with  a  message 
which  had  lost  none  of  its  vigor  by  transmis 
sion  through  either  old  Folium  or  the  over 
seer  to  whom  he  delivered  it.  After  receiving 
it  the  major  burnt  at  white  heat ;  even  Mrs. 
Landon's  soothing  influence  having  no  effect 
on  him. 

When,  after  having  started  the  cows  home 
in  her  husband's  charge,  the  old  woman  re 
turned  to  her  master,  as  he  instructed  her  to 
do,  he  was  just  folding  up  the  paper  which 
he  had  written.  He  made  her  light  a  candle 
and  bring  a  piece  of  sealing-wax,  and  with  it 
he  sealed  the  document  carefully,  using  a 
large  seal  containing  a  crest,  which  he  had 
on  his  watch  chain.  Then  he  endorsed  it 
with  the  words: 

"  Statement  and  Will  of  him  known  as  Thomas 
Browne,  M.D.,  of  Landon  Hill.  Written  wholly  with 
his  own  Hand.  To  be  opened  only  after  his  Death." 

This  paper  he  gave  to  the  old  woman  and 
directed  her  where  to  place  it  in  a  drawer  in 
an  old  desk  in  the  corner,  explaining  to  her 


182  ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

with  great  care  what  it  was,  and  impressing 
on  her  its  importance  in  event  of  his  death 
at  any  time.  She  promised,  with  an  earnest 
ness  which  satisfied  him,  that  it  should  be 
preserved  and  produced,  and  with  a  wave  of 
his  hand  he  dismissed  her. 

As  she  disappeared,  he  sank  back  on  his 
pillow,  and  his  eyes  closed. 

"  It  was  her  due,"  he  said  to  himself  wea 
rily.  "  I  had  not  intended  it ;  but  it  was  her 
due.  I  have  sacrificed  everything,  even  her, 
to  what  I  deemed  my  expiation,  and  perhaps 
after  all  it  was  but  my  pride.  It  has  been  my 
curse  all  my  life.  I  will  not  sacrifice  her  fur 
ther.  It  shall  not  pursue  her  after  my  death. 
I  will  make  the  amend  to  her.  I  will  hum 
ble  them.  '  Humble  them  ! '  "  he  repeated. 
"  There  it  is  again !  God  forgive  me !  it 
comes  up  even  in  my  best  action.  It  has 
ruined  my  life !  blasted  all  it  has  touched ! 
made  me  an  outcast !  left  her  a  beggar !  " 

He  leaned  back  with  an  expression  of 
unutterable  weariness  on  his  gray  face. 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 

MARGARET  was  looking  for  the  cows  down 
in  the  old  pine-grown  field  on  the  river.  She 
had  wanted  the  walk ;  wanted  anything  that 
would  take  her  out  of  herself. 

The  time  that  had  passed  since  her  inter 
view  with  Major  Landon  had  been  new  to 
her ;  her  life  had  been  different.  Why  had 
he  come  to  see  her  ?  Did  Bruce  Landon  love 
her?  He  had  never  himself  intimated  it. 
And  had  she  not  promised  that  she  would 
not  marry  him?  Given  her  word,  which  shut 
him  out  from  her  forever !  Would  she  — 
could  she  marry  him  against  the  will  of  that 
hard,  cruel  father  of  his,  with  his  thin,  proud 
face  and  his  cold  words?  How  dare  he  to 
speak  so  to  her !  How  dare  he  come  to  her 
at  all !  It  was  an  insult.  She,  poor  as  she 
was,  would  humble  his  pride.  Her  grand 
father  was  better  than  he.  She  would  show 
him  that  she,  too,  was  proud.  And  even 
as  she  walked  along  the  well-known  paths 

183 


184  O.V  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

through  the  pines,  she  at  the  thought  held 
her  head  erect  and  stepped  with  an  offended 
mien.  But  there  it  came  again :  the  picture 
•of  the  handsome,  calm,  white  face  upturned, 
with  the  eyes  closed  and  the  lashes  on  his 
cheek,  just  as  he  had  lain  on  the  floor  at  her 
feet  that  evening  when  she  thought  he  was 
dead,  murdered  by  that  ruffian.  Why  could 
she  not  forget  it  ?  Why  had  her  heart  stopped 
beating,  and  then  leaped  into  her  throat  ?  She 
had  thought  of  him  as  he  lay  that  afternoon 
so  long  ago,  asleep  on  his  arm  under  the  great 
poplar  with  the  sunbeams  on  his  beautiful, 
upturned  face,  as  she  had  kissed  him  for  the 
fairy  prince  to  bring  him  to  life.  Why  had 
she  longed  so  to  throw  herself  beside  him  as 
he  lay  that  night  on  the  floor,  and  die  with 
him?  Why  had  she  thought  of  him  all  these 
years  ?  why  had  she  ever  seen  him  ?  Was  he 
not  infinitely  beyond  her  ?  Besides,  had  she 
not  promised  not  to  marry  him,  never  to 
marry  him? 

She  clenched  her  slender  hands  as  she 
walked  along,  and  pressed  the  nails  into 
her  pink  palms  till  they  hurt. 

She  could  see  or  hear  nothing  of  the  cows 
along  the  branch  where  they  could  usually 


ON  NEWFOUND  EIVEE.  185 

be  found,  so  she  went  on  towards  the  river, 
thinking  they  might  be  there.  She  had 
walked  that  path  a  thousand  times,  yet  she 
now  thought  only  of  the  occasions  when  she 
had  met  Bruce  Landon.  She  would  never 
see  him  again;  for  his  cruel,  hard  father 
would  tell  him  what  she  had  said.  He  would 
be  angry  with  her  for  refusing  to  marry  him 
when  he  had  never  even  said  a  word  to  her. 
She  pictured  to  herself  his  indignation  when 
his  father  should  inform  him  of  her  prom 
ise.  What  right  had  she  to  assume  that  he 
wanted  to  marry  her?  She  did  not  know 
even  that  he  loved  her.  He  would  go  away 
and  stay  another  eight  years ;  he  would 
never  come  back.  She  would  not  marry 
him  if  he  did. 

She  stopped  to  listen,  trying  to  think  it 
was  for  the  cow-bells ;  but  the  sorrowful  notes 
of  a  dove's  "  Coo-coo-oo,  Coo-oo-oo  "  on  some 
dead  limb  deep  in  the  pines  were  the  only 
sound  she  heard,  and  they  made  the  silence 
and  loneliness  more  oppressive. 

She  turned  and  went  towards  the  big 
spring  at  the  foot  of  the  great  poplar. 

Was  it  to  find  the  cows  ? 

She  had  almost  reached  the  spring,  when, 


186  OJV  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

at  a  turn  in  the  path,  she  came  face  to  face 
with  a  man. 

Her,heart  leaped  into  her  throat  with  fear ; 
for  she  recognized  at  once  the  burly  figure, 
the  coarse,  bloated  face  crossed  by  the  deep 
red  mark  which  had  given  his  name  to  Poke- 
berry  Green.  He  had  in  his  hand  his  gun. 
He  broke  into  a  coarse  laugh  as  he  observed 
the  start  she  gave. 

"So  you  were  lookin'  fer  me,  my  pretty 
lady,"  he  said  with  a  leer,  resting  his  gun  on 
the  ground,  and  standing  in  the  middle  of 
the  narrow  path.  "  I'm  havin'  luck  to-day." 

"Good  evening;  I  was  looking  for  my 
cows,"  said  Margaret  .in  as  calm  a  voice  as 
she  could  command,  moving  out  of  the  path 
to  let  him  get  by. 

"  Lookin'  fer  the  cows ;  en'  warn'  you 
lookin'  fer  nothin'  else  ?  Well,  now,  maybe 
I'll  help  you  look  fer  'em.  Pleasant  to  find 
comp'ny  in  a  lonesome  place  onexpected, 
am'  it?  Kind  o'  lonesome  place  down  here 
on  the  river  ?  "  The  fellow  laughed  amusedly 
at  the  girl's  frightened  look. 

"Let  me  pass,  please,"  she  said  coldly, 
moving  to  go  by  him. 

"  Oh,  don"  be  in  sich  a  hurry,"  he  drawled. 


ON  NEWFOUND  EIVEE.  187 

"  We  ain  met  in  a  long  time,  —  not  to  talk, 
though  I've  seen  you  often.  I  wuz  lookin' 
fer  somehody,  something  else  besides  you,  an' 
not  ixpectin'  to  fine  sich  pretty  game,  sich  a 
pretty  little  duck,  and  I  cain'  bear  to  give 
you  up.  Don'  frown  that  wa}^;  'tain'  be- 
comin'  to  sich  a  pretty  face.  Cain'  you  smile 
a  little  on  Poke  ?  " 

"  Let  me  by,  sir ;  don't  you  dare  to  speak 
to  me ! "  said  Margaret,  raising  her  head  de 
fiantly  and  looking  at  the  ruffian  with  flash 
ing  eyes. 

He  was  somewhat  abashed,  and  changed 
his  drawling  tone ;  but  as  she  moved,  he 
seized  her  by  the  wrist. 

"  You  vixen  !  "  he  growled ;  "  I've  got  you 
now ;  I  have  been  waiting  fer  you." 

Margaret  was  naturally  wiry,  and  fear  and 
anger  together  gave  her  unwonted  strength. 
With  a  cry  of  anguish  and  fright,  she 
wrenched  her  arm  from  his  grasp,  lacerating 
the  wrist,  and  springing  forward  fled  like  a 
frightened  deer  down  the  path. 

"Ah!  That's  your  game?"  laughed  the 
ruffian,  running  after  her.  "  You  are  worth 
catching.  Stop,  or  I'll  shoot." 

Margaret  fled  the  faster. 


188  O.V  NEWFOUND   1UVER. 

He  was  overtaking  her  when  he  suddenly 
stopped,  and  turned  his  head,  and  listened; 
for  a  shout  was  heard  down  the  path  a  short 
distance  ahead,  and  the  sound  of  a  man's 
footsteps  rushing  towards  them.  Pokeberry 
sprang  into  the  bushes  and  dashed  away,  just 
as  Margaret  rushed  into  the  arms  of  Bruce 
Landon. 

"Oh,  Bruce,  Bruce!"  she  cried. 

The  next  instant  she  was  weeping  hysteri 
cally,  and  his  strong  arms  were  about  her. 

When  the  delirium  had  passed,  Margaret 
found  herself  sitting  on  the  great  rock  by  the 
spring.  Bruce  was  beside  her,  and  his  arm 
was  around  her.  Then  she  remembered. 
She  remembered  how  she  had  clung  to  him  ; 
how  she  had  loved  him  ;  how  safe  she  had 
felt  in  his  arms,  as  if  he  alone  could  shield 
and  save  her ;  how  he  had  soothed  her,  calmed 
her,  comforted  her ;  how  furious  he  had  been 
with  the  ruffian  who  had  insulted  her;  and 
how  he  would  have  followed  him  and  caught 
him,  and,  she  believed,  have  killed  him,  but 
for  her  clinging  to  him,  and  telling  him  that 
she  would  die  if  he  left  her  there  ;  then  how 
he  had  kissed  her  and  told  her  of  his  love  ; 
and  how,  with  her  face  against  his,  she  had 


OJV   NEW FOUND  RIVER.  189 

told  him  that  she  loved  him ;  and  how  she 
could  willingly  have  died  there  in  his  arms. 
All  this  she  now,  for  the  first  time,  remem 
bered. 

Her  head  was  on  his  shoulder,  and  his  arm 
was  around  her,  and  she  rested  with  a  sense 
of  such  perfect  security  and  happiness  that 
when  the  recollection  of  the  promise  to  his 
father  came  suddenly  to  her  it  smote  her 
like  the  shock  of  death.  She  could  not 
act.  She  could  not  give  him  up.  Stronger 
and  stronger,  however,  came  the  recollec 
tion  of  her  position  and  of  the  humiliation 
which  Major  Landon  had  placed  on  her, 
—  on  her  and  on  her  grandfather.  She 
thought  of  the  old  gentleman  sitting  lonely 
in  his  armchair  in  the  bare  room  at  home. 
She  thought  of  his  patience,  of  his  kindness, 
and  of  his  pride.  What  a  blow  it  would  be 
to  him  to  know  it !  She  opened  her  eyes  and 
gazed  straight  before  her  for  a  moment,  think 
ing  it  all  over. 

Suddenly  she  sprang  up  with  a  movement 
so  unexpected  that  Bruce  started,  and  gazed 
about  him,  supposing  some  one  was  approach 
ing. 

Margaret    looked    at    him,    her    lips    half 


190  ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

formed  for  speech.  An  expression  of  deep 
anxiety  had  taken  the  place  of  the  look  of 
perfect  content  which  had  made  her  face  so 
sweet. 

"Well,  what  is  it?"  Bruce  reached  out 
his  hand  to  her,  with  a  smile,  and  then  rose 
to  take  her  again  in  his  arms. 

"No;  I  cannot.  I  have  been  wrong.  I 
cannot  marry  you,  ever,  and  I  have  no  right 
to  love  you ;  it  is  impossible.  No."  She 
backed  away  with  a  gesture  of  refusal,  as 
Bruce  caught  her,  and  with  the  smile  still  on 
his  lips,  attempted  to  put  his  arm  around  her. 
Her  face  was  perfectly  grave,  and  the  happi 
ness  was  dying  slowly  from  it. 

"What  are  you  talking  about?"  he  asked. 

"  Oh !  I  cannot.  No  "  (as  he  tried  to  draw 
her  to  him),  "  no.  Oh,  why  did  I  ever  see 
you  ?  Why  did  you  ever  come  here  ?  "  She 
looked  at  him  piteously,  as  if  she  asked  the 
question  to  receive  an  answer.  "  Why  did 
you  ever  come  here  ?  "  she  repeated. 

"  I  came  because  I  loved  you ;  because  you 
are  my  soul ;  because  God  drove  me  here. 
I  would  have  found  you  in  a  desert  had  you 
been  there,"  declared  Bruce,  vehemently, 
catching  her,  and  drawing  her  firmly  up  to 


ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER.  191 

him.  She  put  up  her  hands,  and  placing 
them  on  his  shoulders,  held  him  at  arms' 
length. 

"No;  you  must  not.  I  cannot;  indeed  I 
cannot.  I  was  wild,  insane  ;  it  is  impossible. 
I  cannot  love  you."  She  kept  him  from  her 
by  an  effort  of  strength. 

"  But  you  do  love  me  ;  you  said  you  did." 

"  No ;  I  was  wrong.     You  cannot  love  me." 

"  But  I  can,  and  I  do,  —  better  than  earth, 
better  than  heaven,"  declared  Bruce,  catch 
ing  and  holding  her  by  her  arms. 

"  No ;  you  have  no  right  to  do  it.  I  am 
nothing  but  an  unknown,  poor  girl.  I  know 
nothing ;  I  have  seen  nothing.  You  are 
Bruce  Landon.  Your  father  —  " 

He  would  have  interrupted  her,  but  she 
would  not  permit  him. 

"  Your  mother  —  " 

"My  mother  is  an  angel,"  declared  the 
young  man,  rejoiced  to  find  one  point  he 
could  combat. 

Her  eyes  softened,  and  she  wavered. 

"  Is  she  ?     What  is  she  like  ?  " 

Bruce  seized  the  opportunity. 

"  She  is  an  angel,"  he  repeated  earnestly. 
"She  is  as  beautiful  in  character  and  mind 


192  ON  NEIVFOUXD  RIVE1L 

as  she  is  in  person,  and  she  is  the  most  beau 
tiful  woman  in  the  world.  One  of  the  two 
most  beautiful,"  he  added,  his  admiration 
showing  in  his  eyes.  "  My  mother  would 
adore  you,  and  you  her,"  he  said. 

She  sighed.  But  the  thought  of  her  grand 
father  came  back  to  her ;  of  him  sitting  alone 
in  his  room.  Then  the  thought  of  Major 
Landon  came,  as  he  had  sat  on  his  handsome 
horse,  looking  over  her  head,  and  asking  her 
to  "  take  a  message  to  the  young  woman 
there,  Dr.  Browne's  granddaughter  —  Miss 
Browne,  or  whatever  her  name  was."  A  hot 
wrave  of  shame  swept  over  her.  It  was  an 
insult. 

With  an  effort  she  suddenly  released  her 
self  from  Bruce's  grasp. 

"  It  is  impossible,"  she  said  in  a  changed 
voice.  "  I  can  never  marry  you." 

"  But  I  don't  understand?  "  broke  in  Bruce. 
"  You  have  told  me  that  you  love  me." 

"  No  ;  I  was  wrong ;  I  do  not.  I  cannot. 
Your  father  —  I  will  not  marry  you." 

"  My  father  has  nothing  to  do  with  me," 
declared  Bruce.  "  I  love  you.  I  have  loved 
you  all  my  life  —  ever  since  you  were  a 
little  girl,  and  I  waked  and  found  you  at 


02V  NEWFOUND  EIVEE.  193 

my  side."     He  caught  her  hand  and  held  it 
fast. 

"You  have  never  been  to  see  my  grand 
father.  I  will  never  marry  —  I  will  never 
love  any  one  without  his  approval  —  his  full 
approval,"  she  said,  faltering,  her  resolution 
waning. 

"  But  I  will  get  it,"  he  said  eagerly.  "  I 
asked  you  to  let  me  go  and  see  him,  and  you 
would  not;  you  remember?" 

"  Yes ;  but  you  should  have  gone,  anyhow," 
she  said  weakly,  driven  from  her  position. 

"I  will  go  now.     Come." 

He  started  to  turn,  drawing  her  with  him. 
His  face  was  eager  with  determination. 

"  No  ;  you  are  so  hasty,"  she  said,  weaken 
ing  before  his  decision. 

"  Ah !  you  are  just  teasing  me  !  "  exclaimed 
Bruce.  He  caught  her,  and,  breaking  down 
the  barrier  of  her  arms,  kissed  her  almost 
violently. 

She  remained  quiet  in  his  arms  a  moment, 
and  then  tried  to  free  herself  again. 

"  You  must  listen.  You  must  not  kiss  me. 
I  will  not  love  you." 

"I  will  kiss  you.  I  will  not  listen.  You 
shall  love  me  !  "  He  kissed  her  again. 


194  CLV  NEWFOUND  1UVEU. 

"  I  am  not  teasing  you,"  she  said  gravely, 
as  he  smiled  down  into  her  eyes.  "  You  must 
go  away,  and  not  come  here  any  more." 

"  I  will  not  go  away.  I  tell  you  now,  I 
will  not,"  said  Bruce.  "You  have  given 
yourself  to  me ;  you  have  opened  the  gates 
of  heaven  to  me,  and  you  shall  not  shut  them  ; 
no  one  shall."  He  kissed  her  again.  "  You 
love  me,  don't  you  ?  Tell  me." 

"  Yes ;  I  do." 

"  Then  you  will  marry  me." 

"  No ;  I  cannot.  I  will  not.  I  have  prom 
ised-  She  stopped. 

" Promised  whom?"  A  sudden  pang  of 
jealousy  shot  through  him. 

"I  cannot  tell." 

"  You  shall ;  you  must."  He  seized  her, 
and  looked  into  her  eyes.  "  You  must  tell 
me." 

She  was  unable  to  resist  him.  His  face 
was  so  close  to  hers,  his  eager  gaze  fascinated 
her.  His  will  dominated  her  will.  She  felt 
that  his  word  was  a  command  which  she 
could  not  disobey. 

"Tell  me,"  he  repeated  quietly;  "whom 
have  you  promised  ?  " 

"  Your  father."      She  looked  him  in  the 


ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER.  195 

eyes,  and  spoke  the  words  in  a  low  voice, 
almost  timidly. 

"  My  father !     When  did  you  see  him  ?  " 
"  Yesterday ;    he    came    yesterday,    and   I 
promised  him."     She  looked  at  him  humbly, 
almost  fearfully. 

"  Well ;  you  shall  unpromise  him.  He 
shall  release  you,"  he  said,  after  a  pause, 
quietly,  but  with  absolute  confidence ;  and, 
for  the  first  time,  she  looked  down.  And  she 
let  him  put  his  arm  around  her,  and  draw 
her  to  him ;  and  quietly  laid  her  head  on  his 
shoulder.  She  felt  that  he  had  taken  charge 
of  the  matter,  and  lifted  the  responsibility 
from  her. 


CHAPTER  XIX. 

WHEN  Bruce  left  her  he  had  obtained 
from  her  a  promise  that  she  would  meet  him 
at  the  spring  the  following  evening  at  sunset. 
His  father  was  absent  from  home,  but  was  to 
return  in  the  morning,  when  he  would  extort 
from  him  a  full  release,  and  absolute  permis 
sion  for  him  to  claim  the  fulfilment  of  her 
promise.  He  had  no  doubt  that  he  would 
secure  these,  and  she  had  suddenly  learned 
to  take  her  views  from  him.  She  wondered 
how  she  could  ever  have  doubted  him.  "  He 
had  won  her.  She  imposed  these  two  condi 
tions,  that  he  should  bring  his  father's  release 
from  her  pledge,  and  win  her  grandfather's 
consent.  He  walked  with  her  to  the  top  of 
the  hill,  and  then  bade  her  good  by.  He 
went  over,  word  by  word,  all  he  had  told  her 
of  his  love.  He  would  die  for  her. 

When  he  left  her,  the  last  glimpse  she  had 
of  him  was  as  he   turned  again  to  kiss  his 
hand  to  her. 
196 


ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER.  197 

"  I  love  you,"  she  heard  him  call.  He  was 
clearly  outlined  against  a  bit  of  blue  evening 
sky  in  a  break  of  the  trees,  tall  and  straight, 
and  as  she  looked  back  at  him  she  felt  that 
he  was  her  master. 

When  Bruce  arrived  at  home,  he  found,  as 
he  expected,  that  his  father  was  not  there. 
The  major  had  gone  to  the  court-house,  some 
twenty-five  miles  away,  to  appear  before  the 
grand  jury.  He  had  determined  to  have 
the  jury  present  Pokeberry,  and,  perhaps,  the 
other  rioters  who  had  attacked  Dr.  Browne's 
house.  Not  that  the  old  creature  ought  not  to 
be  driven  out,  he  explained,  but  that  was  not 
the  way  to  do  it.  Perhaps,  he  might  present 
him,  too.  But  he  would  not  have  a  gang  of 
drunken  blackguards  trespassing  on  private 
property,  and  attacking  a  man  in  his  own 
house.  It  was  an  outrage  on  the  Common 
wealth.  Besides,  he  would  no  longer  submit  to 
such  a  scoundrel  going  unwhipped  of  justice. 

After  all,  deep  down  in  his  heart  was  the 
fear  that  the  ruffian  might  do  Bruce  an 
injury.  He  knew  how,  even  from  Bruce's 
boyhood,  there  had  been  a  mortal  hatred 
between  them;  and,  of  course,  since  Bruce 
had  foiled  him  in  his  attack  on  Dr.  Browne, 


198  O.V  XEU'FOUND  RIVER. 

the  ruffian  liad  a  new  grudge  against  him, 
and  the  boy  was  always  going  where  the 
scoundrel  might  easily  waylay  him.  If  any 
thing  should  happen  to  Bruce,  what  should 
he  do?  The  thought  made  him  tremble. 
Under  all  his  sternness,  he  loved  his  son 
passionately.  He  was  his  pride,  his  idol. 

He  did  not  return  until  the  following  after 
noon.  He  was  in  high  good  humor. 

Just  after  his  arrival,  Bruce  found  him  in 
the  library.  He  greeted  him  pleasantly. 

"  Come  in.  Well,  sir,  I  have  at  last  set 
the  law  in  motion,  and  I  think  we  shall  be 
rid  of  that  ruffian  Pokel>erry  for  a  little  while 
at  least,"  he  began.  u  Hall  will  have  him  by 
to-morrow  night." 

Bruce,  however,  was  too  impatient  to  de 
lay  longer  the  subject  which  engrossed  his 
thoughts.  He  merely  acknowledged  the 
speech  with  a  bow,  and  at  once  demanded 
a  release  of  the  promise  the  old  gentleman 
had  obtained  from  Miss  Reid.  In  a  moment 
there  was  an  explosion.  The  serenity  in 
which  the  major  returned  after  having  ac 
complished  his  purpose  at  the  court-house 
gave  way  to  a  passion  of  anger,  and  he  raged 
over  Bruce's  revolt. 


ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER.  199 

He  positively  refused.  The  young  man, 
however,  sobered  by  his  love  for  Margaret, 
or  by  the  gravity  of  the  step  he  was  tak 
ing,  remained  cool,  and  iirmly  demanded  the 
release. 

"  May  I  ask,  sir,  what  you.  propose  to  sup 
port  this  young  woman  on?"  inquired  the 
major,  with  an  exasperating  manner. 

"Indeed,  sir,  I  have  not  considered  that 
matter,"  replied  Bruce,  disdainfully.  "It  is 
one  which  I  think  only  concerns  her  and 
me." 

"  It  concerns  you  rather  closely.  I  think 
you  had  better  consider  it.  You  are  not 
counting,  I  hope,  on  my  generosity." 

"  I  never  count  on  your  generosity,"  re 
plied  the  young  man,  with  a  serenity  which 
stung  the  major.  "  I  might  count  on  your 
charity ;  but  never  on  your  generosity." 

"  You  are  presuming  on  my  charity  now," 
said  the  major,  sternly. 

"When  I  found  that  you  had  taken  the 
trouble  to  go,  before  I  had  even  declared  my 
love  for  the  young  lady,"  said  Bruce,  "  and 
had  exacted  a  promise  from  her  to  reject 
my  addresses  when  they  should  be  made,  I 
could  do  no  less  than  arrange  to  have  her 


200  ON  NEWFOUND  KIVEE. 

released,  so  that  at  least  she  might  be  free  to 
act ;  and  I  thought  it  would  be  indelicate  to 
discuss  any  other  matters.  As  you  secured 
from  her  a  rejection  of  me  when  I  was  the 
prospective  heir  to  your  opulence,  I  hardly 
imagine  the  loss  of  that  honor  will  add 
greatly  to  the  danger  of  my  refusal." 

"Bruce,"  said  the  major,  making  an  effort  to 
remain  cool,  "  consider  carefully  what  you  are 
doing.  If  you  marry  that  young  woman  " 
He  paused  under  the  stress  of  his  feelings. 
"If  you  but  ask  her  to  marry  you  —  "  He 
paused  again,  unwilling  to  complete  the 
threat;  for  Bruce  straightened  himself,  and 
looked  him  full  in  the  eyes. 

"  I  have  asked  her  to  marry  me,"  he  said  ; 
"  I  love  her,  and  I  will  marry  her  against  both 
heaven  and  hell." 

He  suddenly  broke  out,  and  passionately 
demanded  a  release  of  the  promise  she  had 
given. 

The  major  rose  from  his  chair. 

"Take  it,  and  convey  it  to  her  with  my 
compliments,"  he  said,  standing  straight  and 
white,  waving  his  hand  to  the  door.  "  And 
marry  her,  and  sink  down  to  her  level,  a 
shame  and  disgrace  to  your  name.  Leave 


ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER.  201 

the  house,  and,  after  you  marry  that  woman, 
never  come  into  my  presence  again." 

Bruce's  breast  heaved.  His  face  was  deadly 
white,  and  his  hands  were  clenched. 

"  No  other  man  on  God's  earth  should  speak 
to  me  so  and  live.  I  accept  your  release  and 
your  condition,"  he  said  almost  quietly,  look 
ing  his  father  fearlessly  in  the  face.  Then 
he  turned  and  went  out. 

It  was  late  when  Bruce  reached  the  old 
spring  where  he  was  to  meet  Margaret.  The 
deep  quietude  of  the  summer  afternoon  filled 
the  woods.  Bruce  dropped  down  at  the  foot 
of  the  old  poplar,  and  leaned  back  against  it 
as  he  had  done  so  often  before.  He  was 
waiting  for  Margaret  —  his  Margaret. 

A  deep  happiness  filled  his  breast,  driving 
out  all  thought  of  the  stormy  scene  with  his 
father.  The  pain  it  caused  him  had  passed 
away.  Perhaps  his  mother  could  help  him ; 
at  least,  she  would  never  forsake  him.  How 
ever  thoughts  of  them  might  recur  hereafter, 
there  was  no  place  for  them  in  his  heart  now. 
His  memory  was  too  full  of  Margaret  —  Mar 
garet  who  belonged  to  him  —  Margaret  who 
was  his  life.  As  he  half  sat,  half  reclined,  on 
the  ground,  with  the  back  of  his  head  against 


202  ON  NEWFOUND  BIVER. 

the  tree-trunk,  lie  thought  of  the  first  time  he 
had  ever  seen  her.  It  was  on  that  very  spot. 
He  had  opened  his  eyes,  and  she  had  sat  by 
his  side.  There  was  the  sky  he  remembered 
as  he  dropped  off  to  sleep;  there  were  the 
same  soft  sounds,  the  woodwren  in  the  alders 
below,  the  call  of  the  ploughmen  across  the 
pond  to  their  teams ;  the  same  cow-bells 
brokenly  chiming  far  up  the  pond.  It  made 
him  drowsy,  and  he  let  his  eyes  close,  and 
thought  of  Margaret.  He  dreamed  he  heard 
Margaret  coming  nearer,  nearer,  and  then  — 


CHAPTER   XX. 

ALL  day  Margaret  had  gone  about  as  in  a 
dream.  She  seemed  to  have  found  a  new 
world. 

The  sun  was  almost  down  when  she  slipped 
softly  out  of  her  room,  and,  gliding  across 
the  little  space  in  the  rear  of  the  house, 
which  was  still  kept  clear  for  a  yard,  entered 
the  wood  by  the  old  path  which  led  down 
to  the  spring.  The  sun-rays  came  slanting 
through  the  trees.  It  was  later  than  she  sup 
posed.  She  had  not  intended  to  be  so  late, 
but  the  time  had  slipped  away.  She  wanted 
to  look  —  to  look  right,  and  it  had  taken 
longer  than  she  thought.  The  old  dresses 
were  hard  to  choose  between,  and  then  it 
took  so  long  to  fix  exactly,  the  one  she 
selected ;  the  little  glass  was  so  small.  And 
now  suppose  any  one  should  see  her?  Mammy 
would  not  matter;  but  if  her  grandfather 
should  hear  her  and  call  ?  At  last,  however, 
she  was  safe. 

203 


204  ON  NEWFOUND  1UVEE. 

Had  any  one  seen  her  as  she  passed,  trip 
ping1  down  along  the  shady  path,  he  would 
indeed  have  been  astonished.  The  dress  that 
she  had  selected  was  an  old  lawn,  —  an  em 
pire  dress,  —  as  soft  as  feathers,  and  as  light, 
faded  by  age  to  a  tint  which  just  left  the  rose- 
sprays  visible  like  shadows  of  roses  which 
had  once  lain  on  the  delicate  white.  The 
waist  was  short,  and  the  skirt  loosely  flowing, 
showing  the  little  high-heeled  slippers,  and  a 
hint  of  the  dainty  ankle.  The  white  throat 
and  shapely  neck  showed  above  the  low  col 
lar.  It  was  the  dress  she  had  worn  that  night 
when  he  was  wounded.  What  would  he 
think  of  her?  She  felt  that  she  knew. 

She  was  startled,  as  she  came  in  sight  of 
the  spring,  to  see  a  man  disappear  in  the 
bushes.  She  was  sure  it  was  that  Pokeberry 
Green.  She  stopped,  but  at  the  same  mo 
ment  she  caught  sight  of  Bruce  lying  on  the 
other  side  of  the  tree,  and  instantly  all  her 
fear  disappeared.  His  presence  filled  every 
place  with  safety.  The  man  had  evidently 
seen  him,  and  had  run  away.  She  stood  still 
and  waited,  to  give  whoever  it  was  time  to 
get  well  out  of  hearing  before  going  further. 
Then  she  tripped  on. 


ON  NEWFOUND  EIVEE.  205 

Bruce  did  not  stir.     Ah  !  he  was  asleep. 

She  would  trip  up  and  catch  him,  and  sur 
prise  him.  She  remembered  that  time  so  long 
ago  when  she  had  found  him  lying  there.  She 
had  kissed  him  then.  A  blush  came  to  her 
cheeks  as  she  remembered  it.  She  would 
not  now.  She  would  just  catch  him  by  put 
ting  her  hands  over  his  eyes.  She  tripped  up 
softly,  keeping  the  tree  between  them,  and 
kneeling  down,  put  her  hands  around  and 
over  his  face. 

Why,  it  was  wet ;  he  was  crying ! 

She  looked. 

Good  God !  he  was  covered  with  blood ! 
He  was  dead ! 

She  sprang  to  her  feet  with  a  shriek  which 
reached  the  ploughmen  turning  their  slow 
mules  at  the  end  of  the  furrows  the  other 
side  of  the  pond,  and  made  them  stop  and 
listen,  and  which  fell  on  the  ears  of  the  heavy 
man  with  the  ugly  scar  on  his  neck,  hurrying 
off  through  the  pines  with  muttered  oaths, 
and  made  him  quicken  his  pace  to  a  run. 

In  a  flash  she  had  taken  it  in.  Pokeberry, 
that  man  she  had  seen,  had  murdered  him. 
But  he  could  not  be  dead.  She  laid  his  head 
gently  down.  She  knew  this  was  the  way 


206  ON  N E W FOUND  EIVER. 

to  do  when  one  fainted.  She  felt  his  wrist ; 
tore  open  his  collar;  felt  his  heart;  ran  to 
the  spring,  and  dipping  her  handkerchief  in, 
ran  back  and  bathed  his  white  face,  washing 
the  clotted  blood  from  it,  and  from  his  hair. 
There  was  the  place,  a  great,  ugly  gash  on 
the  head,  over  the  eyes,  as  if  he  had  been 
struck  with  a  club  or  a  hammer. 

"  Bruce !  Bruce  !  "  she  called  him. 

No,  he  was  dead. 

She  sat  down  and  took  his  head  in  her  lap. 
She  was  calm  now,  as  calm  as  he  was,  and  he 
was  calm  forever.  He  was  hers  now.  She 
bent  over  and  kissed  him,  thinking  quite 
calmly  of  the  first  time  she  had  kissed  him 
when  he  lay  there.  She  almost  expected  him 
to  wake  now  as  he  had  done  then.  Anyhow, 
he  was  hers.  The  blood  still  flowed  a  little. 
She  tore  a  strip  from  her  dress  and  bound  up 
his  head  and  stopped  the  flow.  Then  she 
stood  up.  What  should  she  do?  Her  grand 
father  and  Uncle  Folium  were  both  crippled 
and  unable  to  walk,  and  mammy  was  away ; 
gone  after  the  cows. 

The  nearest  place  at  which  she  could  get 
help,  —  Was,  —  yes,  she  must  go  there.  He 
had,  she  knew,  crossed  in  a  boat.  She  could 


07V  NEWFOUND  EIVER.  207 

carry  him,  she  felt  so  strong ;  but  that  might 
start  the  bleeding  again,  and  he  might  not 
be  dead,  —  please  God,  he  might  not !  Her 
hopes  revived.  She  felt  his  pulse,  his  heart 
again,  and  then  she  dashed  off. 

It  was  not  quite  dusk  in  the  great  hall  at 
Landon  Hall.  The  major  was  striding  up 
and  down,  justifying  himself  to  his  wife  for 
his  treatment  of  Bruce.  He  had,  in  his  anger 
and  wounded  pride,  said  hard  things  about 
him,  and  Mrs.  Landon  had  been  weeping. 
He  still  felt  bitter  towards  him,  but  not  so 
bitter  as  he  had  felt  at  first.  He  was,  how 
ever,  still  saying  hard  things  about  him,  for 
his  pride  was  wounded.  Bruce  had  beaten 
him,  had  defied  him,  foiled  him,  overpowered 
him.  No,  he  did  not  care,  and  he  said  so,  his 
anger  rising  again  against  him. 

"  No ;  I  don't  care  if  he  never  enters  that 
door  again ;  he  shall  never  enter  it  with  her," 
he  was  saying,  when  there  was  a  sound  out 
side :  a  sound  of  hurrying  steps ;  some  one 
ran  up  the  gravel  walk,  sprang  across  the 
veranda,  and  seizing  the  knob,  turned  it 
hastily,  first  the  wrong  way  and  then  the 
right ;  the  great  door  flew  open,  and  an  appa 
rition  faced  him. 


208  ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

A  young  girl  in  a  light  dress,  her  hair 
dishevelled,  her  face  deadly  white,  her  eyes 
wild,  her  hands  outstretched  covered  with 
blood,  stood  before  him. 

Mrs.  Landon  gave  a  cry. 

"  In  the  name  of  God !  what  is  it  ? "  ex 
claimed  the  major. 

"  He  is  dead  !     Murdered  !  "  she  gasped. 

"Where?     How?     Who?" 

"  Bruce,  —  your  son,  —  murdered  at  the 
spring !  Dead !  " 

She  swayed,  as  if  about  to  fall. 

"  Good  God !  "  The  major  caught  her  and 
held  her  in  his  arms. 

"Brandy!"  he  called;  "brandy,  quick!" 
It  was  brought  by  Mrs.  Landon,  and  he 
poured  some  down  Margaret's  throat  and 
revived  her.  She  staggered  to  her  feet. 
"  Come,  quick,  for  God's  sake  !  It  may  not 
be  too  late.  Come ! "  She  pulled  him  to 
the  door. 

It  was  quite  dark  when  they  reached  him. 
He  was  still  lying  as  Margaret  had  left  him, 
outstretched,  motionless,  unconscious.  They 
carried  him  to  the  old  doctor's,  as  the  nearest 
place,  and  because  Margaret  ordered  it.  She 
had  taken  charge.  Her  grandfather  might 


ON  NEWFOUND   RIVER.  209 

save  him,  she  said.  Once  more  she  had  be 
come  calm. 

He  was  borne  in  and  laid  in  her  room,  on 
her  bed,  where  he  had  lain  that  night  after  he 
was  wounded. 

She  had  run  forward  and  warned  her  grand 
father,  and  when  the  men  arrived,  they  met 
them,  and  she  led  them  in  in  the  dark.  A 
candle  was  brought. 

The  old  surgeon  leaned  over  the  body  and 
began  his  examination. 

"Brandy,"  he  said.  Some  one  handed  it 
to  him,  and  he  poured  a  little  between  his 
lips. 

"  He  is  living,"  he  murmured. 

Margaret  sank  down  on  the  floor  in  a  heap. 

They  picked  her  up,  and  in  a  little  while 
she  revived  and  went  out  of  the  room. 

A  short  time  afterwards  there  was  a  knock 
at  the  outer  door. 

It  was  Mrs.  Landon,  who  had  come  over  on 
horseback,  around  the  head  of  the  pond.  The 
major  went  to  meet  her.  She  came  in,  her 
face  deadly  white,  and  fell  on  her  knees 
silently  beside  the  bed.  She  looked  at  no 
one ;  but,  pressing  her  face  against  her  son's 
arm,  uttered  a  low  moaning  sound. 


210  ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

"  There  is  no  fracture,"  said  the  old  sur 
geon,  gently. 

She  made  no  answer.  She  only  moved 
slightly  and  placed  her  hand  on  Bruce's  hair. 

The  doctor  uttered  another  sentence  or  two 
of  encouragement,  and  went  out  to  get  some 
article.  In  a  little  while  Margaret  brought 
it  in.  Major  Landon  had  meantime  stepped 
out  of  the  room,  and  Mrs.  Landon  was  alone 
with  her  son.  She  was  still  on  her  knees 
beside  him,  but  she  rose  as  Margaret  entered. 
Margaret  set  the  glass  down  and  turned  to 
leave.  As  she  did  so  she  glanced  up.  Mrs. 
Landon  was  looking  at  her,  and  their  eyes 
met.  The  girl's  eyes  fell,  and  she  stood  still 
with  her  head  bowed  humbly. 

"  I  know  all,"  said  Mrs.  Landon,  gently. 

At  the  sound  of  her  low  voice  Margaret 
caught  her  hand,  and,  raising  it,  kissed  it.  It 
was  an  act  of  obeisance.  She  looked  up,  and 
in  an  instant  the  two  women  were  in  each 
other's  arms. 

It  was  an  hour  afterwards  when  the  old 
doctor  left  Bruce's  side  again  and  went  to  his 
own  room.  Margaret  followed  him.  A  mo 
ment  later  the  door  opened,  and  the  major 
entered  without  warning. 


ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER.  211 

The  old  man  turned  to  him.  It  was  the 
first  time  he  had  faced  him.  He  was  dressed 
in  an  old  wrapper,  and  wore  a  black  skull 
cap,  from  under  which  his  long  white  hair 
fell  down  to  his  shoulders.  He  raised  his 
head  as  the  major  entered,  and  gave  him  an 
almost  fierce  look  from  his  piercing  eyes. 

"  In  God's  name  who  are  you  ?  "  demanded 
the  major. 

The  old  man  half  turned  away. 

"  What  is  that  to  you  ?  "  he  said,  in  his 
deep  voice.  "Have  I  ever  wronged  you? 
ever  interfered  with  you?  ever  asked  of  you 
a  favor  ?  ever  demanded  of  you  a  right  ?  Let 
me  alone.  Go  back  to  your  son.  He  will 
get  well.  Take  him  home  when  he  is  well 
enough,  and  keep  him  there."  He  turned  his 
back. 

"  No,"  said  the  major,  who  had  never  taken 
his  eyes  from  his  face.  "  By  — !  you  shall 
tell  me  who  you  are."  He  caught  him  by 
the  arm  almost  fiercely,  and  turned  him  to 
the  light. 

"  What  is  your  name  ?  " 

"  I  have  no  name ;  my  name  is  dead,"  said 
the  old  surgeon,  with  emotion.  He  moved 
away,  then  suddenly  turned  back  and,  catch- 


212  ON  NEWFOUND  1UVEE. 

ing  Margaret  who,  with  wide  eyes  was  stand 
ing  near  him,  her  burning  gaze  on  his  face, 
he  pulled  her  forward. 

"  I  have  no  name ;  I  am  no  one ;  but  this 
child  has  a  name  and  blood  as  good  as  yours, 
Major  Landon.  She  is  Charles  Landon's 
great-granddaughter."  He  put  her  half  be 
fore  him. 

"  Good  God !  "  exclaimed  the  major. 

He  sprang  forward  and  took  the  old  sur 
geon  in  his  arms.  He  embraced  him  almost 
fiercely  again  and  again. 

"  Brother !  "  he  said,  with  deep  emotion. 
"  My  brother,  my  dear  brother,  my  own 
brother !  "  His  voice  sounded  like  a  caress. 
He  released  him  and  caught  him  again,  say 
ing. 

"  My  dear,  dear  brother  ! " 

Both  men  were  weeping.  The  old  doctor 
was  completely  overcome.  His  head  sank, 
and  his  sobs  were  audible.  Presently  the 
major  let  him  go. 

Margaret  was  standing  by,  deeply  moved. 
She  stepped  to  her  grandfather's  side. 

"  Oli,  grandfather  !  "  she  said,  putting  her 
arms  about  him. 

When   she   let  him  go,  the  major  turned 


ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER.  213 

to  her  with  grave  courtesy,  —  almost  hu 
mility. 

"  I  do  not  ask  your  pardon,"  he  said.  He 
took  her  hand,  and,  raising  it,  kissed  it.  It 
was  an  act  of  homage  such  as  he  had  never 
before  in  all  his  life  paid  any  other  woman 
but  his  wife.  "But  I  ask  your  leave  to  thank 
you  for  my  son's  life.  I  owe  you  everything. 
He  and  all  I  have  are  yours.  I  only  ask  that 
you  will  believe  that  I  loved  him  better  than 
all  the  world.  He  is  wiser  than  I.  I  owe 
you  his  life." 

Margaret  flung  herself  into  his  arms  and 
wept  on  his  shoulder. 

"  I  loved  him  so,"  she  sobbed. 

"  He  loved  you  also,"  he  said,  soothing  her 
tenderly. 


CHAPTER   XXL 

WHILST  Bruce  was  lying  thus  unconscious 
between  life  and  death,  his  would-be  murderer 
was  fleeing  for  his  life.  His  attack  on  Bruce 
had  put  the  neighborhood  in  a  turmoil.  Never 
had  there  been  such  excitement  on  Newfound. 
A  hue  and  cry  had  been  raised,  and  the  whole 
district  was  out  scouring  the  country  for  the 
murderer.  Sam  Mills  took  his  old,  long  gun 
from  the  forks  over  his  door,  and  without 
more  than  a  word  or  two,  but  with  an  ugly 
glitter  in  his  eyes,  struck  out  for  the  woods. 
Squire  Johnson,  his  old  opposition  and  pom 
posity  alike  forgotten,  had  issued  the  warrant, 
and  forthwith  joined  in  the  chase.  Little 
Hall,  forgetting  his  official  formula  about 
"  the  posse,"  enlisted  the  men,  as  he  galloped 
from  house  to  house,  by  simply  calling  to 
them  to  "git  their  guns  and  come  on  with 
me  and  Sam;  Pokeberry's  done  murdered 
that  boy,  Bruce  Landon." 

It  was  a  sympathetic  people,  slow  to  catch; 
214 


ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER.  215 

but  when  ignited,  going  up  all  together  like 
powder. 

The  whole  country  was  out,  and  the  gen 
eral  sentiment  was  that  when  the  murderer 
should  be  caught,  it  would  be  useless  to  wait 
for  a  trial ;  a  simple  waste  of  time.  Indeed,  in 
every  squad  of  men,  one,  at  least,  had  a  "  plough- 
line  "  hanging  on  his  arm,  ready  for  use. 

The  neighborhood  was  scoured. 

Yet,  after  twenty-four  hours,  no  trace  of 
him  had  been  found.  Many  thought  he  had 
escaped  and  gone  off  "  back  up  whar  he  come 
from."  He  had  been  saying,  for  some  time, 
he  was  going  to  do  so.  The  miserable  cabin 
where  he  had  lived  was  deserted,  and  the 
two  little  hounds  were  found  inside ;  one 
dead  on  the  floor,  with  its  brains  dashed  out, 
the  other,  with  an  ugly  gash  in  its  head, 
where  it  had  evidently  been  struck  with  the 
same  intent.  This  was  regarded  as  positive 
proof  that  Pokeberry  had  fled  the  country ; 
and  when  the  roads  had  been  picketed  and 
the  woods  scoured  for  twenty-four  hours, 
many  of  the  pursuers  gave  up  and  returned 
home.  Little  Hall,  however,  with  the  sheriff- 
alty  in  his  eye,  and  with  a  yet  larger  number, 
continued  the  search,  though  without  success, 


216  ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

and  on  the  afternoon  of  the  second  day,  he 
and  a  party  were  standing  in  the  little  yard 
in  front  of  Pokeherry's  cabin,  discussing  the 
futility  of  further  search.  Dick  Runaway 
was  among  them,  listening  anxiously.  The 
little  hound,  which  had  escaped  Pokeberry's 
murderous  hand,  slid  timidly  out  from  under 
the  house  and  became  an  object  of  interest. 

"  He  might  'a'  left  them  po'  dawgs,"  said 
one,  "  seem'  he  made  his  livin'  by  'em.  They 
never  done  him  no  harm,  anyways." 

"  It's  a  d — d  mean  man  as  kills  a  dawg," 
declared  Sam  Mills. 

"  An'  his  own  dawg,  too." 

"  Any  dawg,"  said  Mills. 

All  assented  to  this  proposition.  Killing  a 
dog  was  regarded  as  quite  as  unpardonable 
as  murdering  a  man.  The  poor  little  beast, 
meantime,  with  his  tail  between  his  legs, 
circled  around  the  group  and  singled  out  the 
negro.  He  recognized  in  Dick  an  old  friend, 
and  almost  wagged  his  tail  at  him.  Dick 
stooped  down  and  began  to  examine  his 
wound,  which  became  the  general  subject  of 
discussion.  This  again  aroused  the  feeling 
against  Pokeberry,  and  resulted  in  a  determi 
nation  to  make  another  effort  to  catch  the 


ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER.  217 

murderer.  A  man  who  would  treat  his  own 
dog  that  way  was  too  dangerous  to  let  escape. 

The  group  went  off  again,  leaving  Hall, 
who  was  completely  broken  down,  and  an 
other  man  to  watch  the  house,  in  case  Poke- 
berry  should  by  any  chance  come  back  there. 
It  was  then  about  dusk. 

Dick  set  out  towards  home,  the  maimed 
little  hound  following  him.  As  he  walked 
along,  the  negro  appeared  in  deep  thought. 
Every  now  and  then  he  stopped  and  muttered 
to  himself,  and  several  times  he  stooped  and 
petted  the  little  animal  at  his  heels,  which 
dumbly  responded.  At  last,  he  stopped  where 
a  narrow  path  ran  off  at  right  angles  to  the 
one  he  was  in. 

"Done  kill  Marse  Bruce,  and  mos'  kill 
you,  and  warn  sell  me  down  to  Souf  Cyar- 
liny,"  he  muttered,  as  he  stooped  over  the 
little  creature.  He  stood  up  presently,  and 
peered  down  the  narrow  path  earnestly. 

"  Heah,  come  'long,"  he  said  suddenly.  "  I 
boun'  he  down  this  way,"  and  plunged  down 
the  path  through  the  woods. 

An  hour  later  he  was  in  the  well-known 
territory  of  Landon  Hill. 

One  seeing  him  threading  the  narrow  cow- 


218  ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

tracks  would  have  supposed  he  was  coon  or 
'possum  hunting.  The  hound  was  in  front, 
sniffing  about,  and  several  times  started  off. 
At  last  Dick  took  a  stout  cord,  which  was 
wrapped  several  times  around  his  waist,  and 
tied  one  end  around  the  dog's  neck,  so  as  to 
control  him.  The  waning  moon  rose  late  in 
the  night,  and  let  an  uncertain  and  ghostly 
light  fall  through  the  trees. 

All  night  long  Dick  remained  in  the  woods, 
slowly  threading  path  after  path,  penetrat 
ing  the  densest  thickets  on  Newfound.  The 
hound,  now  thoroughly  interested,  several 
times  started  off  as  if  on  a  trail ;  but  Dick 
pulled  him  up,  and  led  him  elsewhere. 

"  Dis  ain'  no  'possum  hunt,  you  ole  fool," 
he  said,  under  his  breath ;  "  you  know  you 
ain'  no  'possum  dawg." 

It  was  towards  morning  that,  deep  down  in 
the  pines  on  the  bank  of  Newfound,  the  dog 
struck  a  trail  which  the  negro  let  him  follow. 
When  he  first  came  on  it,  his  manner  changed. 
Dick  was  about  to  draw  him  away ;  but  the 
dog  pulled  so,  that  finally  he  let  him  go  on. 
The  trail  went  straight  towards  the  river.  At 
last,  in  a  little  patch  of  pale  moonlight,  Dick 
stooped  and  closely  examined  the  ground. 


ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER.  219 

A  man's  track,  almost  fresh,  showed  in  the 
soft  earth. 

"  Ah !  heah  he,  de  black,  nigger-ketchin' 
devil,"  he  muttered. 

Dick  peered  anxiously  through  the  bushes. 
The  dog,  with  his  nose  to  the  ground,  pulled 
on  the  -cord. 

Dick  paused. 

"  Dat  man  got  meanness  in  him,"  he  mut 
tered  to  himself. 

Suddenly  he  turned,  and,  pulling  the  dog 
after  him,  started  back.  He  talked  to  the 
little  beast  reassuringly  as  he  walked  along. 
"I  know  whar  he  is  now;  you  needn'  be 
feared,  we  gwine  ketch  him.  He  ain'  gwine 
nowhar  b'fo'  we  git  back.  I  jes'  gwine  for 
help.  I  knowed  he  was  down  dyah,"  he  con 
cluded  triumphantly. 

In  a  little  while  he  was  in  sight  of  the 
little,  mean-looking  shanty  where  Pokeberry 
had  lived.  He  reconnoitred  the  space  before 
him  and,  stooping,  approached  cautiously ;  for 
he  knew  the  two  men  were  on  watch,  and 
they  might  mistake  him  for  the  occupant. 

His  precaution  was,  however,  unnecessary; 
for,  when  he  crept  up  to  the  door,  both  men 
were  fast  asleep  on  the  floor. 


220  ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

Hall,  who  had  been  up  all  the  night  before, 
had  set  the  other  man  as  his  subordinate,  on 
guard  for  the  first  watch,  and  had  pulled  off 
his  heavy  boots  and  gone  regularly  to  sleep ; 
and  the  guard  had  duly  followed  suit,  with 
an  easy  conscience,  after  a  short  interval. 

The  negro  stole  up  to  the  constable  and 
touched  him. 

"  Mr.  Hall !  " 

There  was  no  response.  Then  he  shook 
him. 

"Mr.  Hall!  Marse  Jim!" 

At  the  second  or  third  shaking,  Hall  sprang 
up,  and,  still  half  asleep,  seized  his  gun. 

"  'Tain'    nobody   but    me,    Marse    Jim,  - 
Dick,  —  Major    Landon'     Dick,"     said    the 
negro. 

"  Oh !  I  thought  'twas  that  scoundrel 
Pokeberry,"  said  the  little  officer,  in  a  disap 
pointed  tone.  "  I  dreamt  he  was  comin'  up 
the  path." 

"  Nor,  suh ;  but  I  done  fine  him,"  said  the 
negro. 

In  a  second  the  little  constable  was  wide 
awake.  He  began  to  pull  on  his  boots  vigor 
ously.  His  first  impulse  was  to  get  a  posse  ; 
but  as  he  got  on  his  boots,  his  courage  in- 


ON  NEWFOUND  EIVER.  221 

creased.  The  glory  of  catching  the  murderer 
alone  dawned  on  him.  The  sheriffalty  —  the 
goal  of  his  highest  ambition  —  suddenly 
loomed  up  in  sight. 

The  sound  slumber  of  his  companion  who, 
with  his  head  on  his  arm,  and  his  mouth  wide 
open,  slept  peacefully  on  even  through  the 
the  noise  of  Hall's  stamping  in  getting  on  his 
boots,  remained  unbroken. 

"Come  on;  me  an'  you  can  ketch  him," 
said  the  constable  to  the  negro,  picking  up 
his  gun.  A  loud  snort  from  his  friend  caught 
his  ear.  He  gave  him  a  look  of  contempt. 

"  He's  a  -  -  of  a  guard,"  he  said ;  "  ain' 
he  !  Pokeberry  could  have  come  and  knocked 
both  our  brains  out  like  he  done  that  boy's. 
Come  along." 

He  picked  up  a  rope  which  lay  on  the  floor, 
and  gave  it  to  the  negro. 

Dick  was  not  afraid.  He  possessed  plenty 
of  physical  courage.  All  he  wanted  was  the 
leadership  —  the  moral  support  of  a  white 
man.  His  face  now  looked  eager  enough,  as, 
calling  the  little  hound,  the  two  men  disap 
peared  down  the  path  in  the  pines. 

It  was  just  daybreak,  when,  deep  down  in 
the  marsh,  the  dog  suddenly  stopped,  and 


'2-2-2  ON  NEWFOUND  RIVERA 

raising  his  head,  gave  a  low  growl,  his  tail 
dropping,  and  every  hair  on  his  thin  back 
rising. 

"  Ah  ! "  said  the  negro,  under  his  breath, 
seizing  him.  "  Don'  you  bark." 

Hall  cocked  his  gun. 

They  held  a  little  whispered  consultation, 
and  then  the  negro  crept  forward,  Hall  fol 
lowing  at  his  heels  with  his  gun  ready. 
Reaching  a  heavy  clump  of  bushes,  Dick 
parted  them  and  peeped  through.  When  he 
turned,  his  eyes  were  almost  popping  out  of 
his  head.  He  pointed  silently  for  Hall  to 
look. 

Ten  feet  ahead,  on  the  ground,  under  a 
tree,  lay  a  heavy  man  fast  asleep  on  his  back. 
The  breast  of  his  coarse  dirty  shirt  was  open, 
and  his  thick  red  neck  showed  the  deep  pur 
ple  mark  of  Pokeberry.  An  empty  whiskey- 
flask  was  near  him.  A  gun  lay  beside  him, 
and  the  handle  of  an  ugly  knife  peeped  out 
from  his  belt.  Another  consultation  was  held, 
and  then  Dick,  taking  the  rope,  and  making 
a  large  running  knot,  crept  forward,  whilst 
Hall  brought  his  gun  half  up,  ready  for  use 
if  it  were  needed.  Carefully  placing  the 
open  large  loop  around  one  of  the  sleeper's 


ON  NEWFOUND  EIVEE.  223 

hands,  which  was  raised  from  the  ground  and 
enabled  him  to  adjust  it,  Dick  suddenly  jerked 
it  tight.  The  murderer,  with  an  oath,  sprang 
up  into  a  sitting  posture.  As  he  did  so,  the 
negro  gave  a  turn  of  his  rope  around  his 
other  hand,  and  then,  with  a  dexterous  twist, 
wrapped  it  around  his  neck,  and  pulled  it 
taut. 

Pokeberry  lost  a  second  trying  to  get  at  his 
knife,  in  which  Dick  gave  another  turn  of  the 
rope  around  his  neck,  and  got  his  hands  to 
gether.  Pokeberry  rose,  but  the  negro  flung 
himself  on  him.  Even  then  it  was  a  terrible 
struggle,  and  the  clothes  of  the  two  men  as 
they  wrestled  and  rolled  were  torn  to  shreds. 

Little  Hall's  gun  was  useless ;  for  he  could 
not  shoot  one  without  the  other.  He,  how 
ever,  jumped  around  and  encouraged  Dick 
with  many  oaths,  standing  ready  to  aid  him 
if  it  should  become  necessary.  It  did  not 
become  necessary;  for  the  liquor  in  Poke- 
berry's  brain,  and  the  tangle  of  cord  around 
his  wrists  and  neck  decided  the  contest,  and 
Dick  finally  had  the  murderer  bound  and 
subdued.  His  struggles  but  tightened  the 
cords  around  his  throat. 

"  Loosen  this  rope,  for   God's   sake ! "  he 


224  ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

gurgled.  "  I'm  chokin'  to  death."  His  eyes, 
in  fact,  looked  as  if  he  were  speaking  the  truth. 

"  Wait  till  marster  and  them  white  mens 
gits  hold  of  you,"  said  Dick,  "  an'  you'll  have 
a  tighter  rope  'n  that  roun'  yo'  neck." 

He,  however,  relieved  it  a  little.  This 
suggestion  had  its  effect  on  the  ruffian. 

tk  What  they  goin'  to  do  with  me  ? "  he 
asked.  "Try  me?" 

"  Hang  you." 

His  jaws  dropped.     "  When  ?  " 

"  Dee  got  rope  waitin'  fer  you  now,"  said 
Dick. 

The  ruffian's  red  face  turned  deadly  white. 

"  I  didn't  do  it,"  he  said.     "  I  swear  —  " 

"Yes,  you  did.  Git  up  heah ;  I  gwine 
carry  you  to  him  right  now." 

They  lifted  the  fellow;  but  he  dropped 
down  again. 

44  Look  here,"  he  said ;  "  if  you  all  will  let 
me  get  away,  I'll  —  I'll  give  you  anything  in 
the  world." 

Hall  laughed  derisively. 

44  Get  up,  and  come  on." 

44 1  would  n'  let  you  git  'way,"  said  Dick, 
44  not  fer  marster's  big  plantation  an'  ev'ry 
mule  on  it.  Git  up  heah  ! " 


ON  NEWFOUND  1UVER.  225 

The  two  men  jerked  at  the  rope  till  the 
brute,  half  strangled,  agreed  to  come. 

The  twenty  or  more  men  assembled  at  the 
Crossroads  that  morning  were  a  sleepy  and 
dejected-looking  set.  Their  search  had  failed ; 
the  murderer  had  escaped.  Suddenly  one 
of  them  swore  a  great  oath  and  pointed  up 
the  road.  There  came  three  men,  the  fore 
most  with  his  hands  and  arms  tied  to  his 
body,  and  behind  him,  Hall  and  Dick  Runa 
way,  walking  like  soldiers,  with  guns  on  their 
shoulders.  A  little  hound  trotted  at  Dick's 
heel.  The  crowd  was  instantly  in  a  commo 
tion.  They  streamed  down  the  road  to  meet 
the  captors  and  their  prisoner. 

Pokeberry  was  taken  from  the  two,  who 
were  swept  from  their  feet,  and  in  a  minute 
a  rope  was  around  his  neck.  He  recognized 
his  peril.  His  face  was  deadly  white,  and  he 
began  to  plead.  His  pleading,  however,  was 
cut  short.  The  mob  was  in  no  humor  for 
mercy.  He  was  dragged  along  to  the  Cross 
roads,  w^here  a  brief  stop  was  made,  and  was 
tied  to  a  tree,  whilst  a  consultation  was  held. 
It  was  determined  to  lynch  him  immediately. 
The  crowd  again  surrounded  him.  One  or 
two  of  them  told  him  to  pray.  The  poor 


226  ON 


wretch  broke  forth  into  cries.  But  the  mob 
was  pitiless.  It  contained  a  number  who 
had  been  his  boon  companions.  His  many 
offences  were  enumerated,  the  attack  on  Dr. 
Browne  being  one  of  them. 

"  Jim,  you  are  the  constable  ;  you  ought 
to  protect  me,"  he  said  to  Hall. 

"Protect  you!  I'm  going  to  hang  you," 
said  Hall. 

At  this  moment,  a  remark  from  Dick  unex 
pectedly  intervened  and  saved  him. 

The  negro  was  most  eager  to  have  him  die, 
but  suggested  that  maybe  his  master  would 
like  to  see  him  hung.  This  opened  a  discus 
sion  ;  and  by  one  of  the  freaks  which  fre 
quently  operate  on  a  mob,  it  turned  the  scale, 
and  it  was  decided  to  put  the  question  to  a 
vote,  whether  he  should  or  should  not  be 
hung  till  the  major  could  see  him. 

It  was  decided  by  a  small  majority  that 
the  hanging  should  be  put  off,  as  it  could 
be  at  most  for  only  a  few  hours. 

The  prisoner  was  locked  up  in  a  little  out 
house  on  the  premises,  with  guards  over  him. 
During  the  day,  hundreds  of  people  flocked 
to  the  place,  and  the  little  groggery  did  the 
largest  business  ever  known,  at  least  in  whis- 


ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER.  22? 

key.  The  guards  furnished  their  part  of  the 
patronage,  and  exhibited  the  prisoner  as  if  he 
had  been  a  show. 

By  nightfall  they  were  all  in  liquor, 
and  were  drinking  heavily.  Hospitality  de 
manded  that  even  a  murderer  should  be 
treated  properly  in  this  respect,  standing,  as 
it  were,  somewhat  in  the  place  of  a  guest. 
Pokeberry  had  been  furnished  all  the  liquor 
he  wanted.  This  was  a  great  deal.  He  called 
for  it  frequently.  At  dark  he  was  apparently 
drunk.  His  guards  were  certainly  so. 

The  next  morning,  at  daylight,  the  prisoner 
was  gone.  No  one  could  tell  how;  and  as 
there  had  been  a  heavy  thunder-storm  in  the 
night,  there  was  small  chance  of  tracking 
him.  The  guards  were  too  steeped  in  liquor 
and  overwhelmed  with  confusion  to  give  any 
coherent  account.  He  had  actually  taken 
their  guns  with  him.  He  had  been  there  at 
two  o'clock.  One  of  them  had  taken  a  last 
drink  with  him.  There  was  a  great  commo 
tion.  The  guards  were  universally  cursed 
and  derided,  and  sought  consolation  in  stupor. 

A  hue  and  cry  was  again  raised,  and  the 
fugitive  was  hotly  pursued.  Dick  Runaway 
and  the  little  hound,  whose  reputations  were 


228  ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

established,  were  recognized  as  important  fac 
tors  in  the  chase,  and  were  given  honorable 
positions  in  the  front. 

The  crowd  struck  for  Newfound.  The 
woods  were  systematically  searched. 

Towards  sunset,  the  track  of  the  fugitive 
was  discovered.  The  hound  had  followed  the 
scent  to  an  old  brush-pile,  deep  in  a  thicket. 
The  fugitive  had  evidently  lain  there  con 
cealed.  The  brush  was  scattered  about,  as  if 
he  had  left  hastily.  The  little  hound  dashed 
off  towards  the  water.  He  was  making  for 
the  pond,  and  the  dense  thickets  on  the  other 
side.  The  little  beast,  thoroughly  interested, 
followed  the  trail  with  the  precision  of  des 
tiny.  It  cut  straight  for  the  river.  It  was 
evidently  warm,  for  he  gave  mouth,  his  long, 
mellow  note  exciting  the  pursuers,  who  could 
scarcely  keep  up  with  him.  Once  the  trail 
was  lost  for  a  little  while,  where  the  fugi 
tive  had  waded  in  a  branch;  but  the  little 
animal  picked  it  up  again,  and  struck  out 
confidently  in  the  same  direction. 

At  last,  just  at  sunset,  one  of  the  pursuers 
caught  sight  of  a  figure  on  a  knoll  a  few  hun 
dred  yards  ahead,  running  with  all  his  speed. 
His  shout  gave  new  ardor  to  the  chase,  and 


ON  NEWFOUND  E1VEE.  229 

the  crowd,  with  loud  cries,  dashed  through  the 
bush  to  head  him  off  from  the  pond. 

It  was,  indeed,  Pokeberry.  All  day  he  had 
lain  concealed,  crouched  under  a  pile  of  brush 
in  the  pines,  in  a  spot  which  he  had  found  an 
hour  or  two  after  his  escape.  Newfound  was 
up  a  little,  and  he  could  not  cross  safely  just 
then ;  but  it  would  fall  by  night,  and  he  could 
get  over. 

He  felt  secure,  and,  overcome  with  fatigue 
and  relief,  had  fallen  asleep.  How  long  he 
slept  he  could  not  tell. 

He  was  aroused  suddenly  by  shouts  in  the 
distance.  He  lay  still.  He  was  so  concealed 
that  they  might  pass  within  ten  feet  of  him 
and  miss  him.  But  suddenly  he  started  up, 
for  the  note  of  a  hound,  a  note  well  known, 
reached  his  ears.  A  deep  oath  fell  from  his 
lips,  and  his  face  grew  deadly  white.  It  was 
his  own  dog,  and  he  was  on  a  warm  trail : 
on  his  track.  The  notes  came  again  clearer. 
They  were  nearer;  they  were  on  his  trail. 
Springing  up  with  an  oath,  and  seizing  his 
gun,  he  dashed  through  the  woods.  If  he 
could  get  to  the  head  of  the  pond,  and  reach 
the  other  side,  he  would  be  safe.  The  old 
ravines  and  the  thickets  of  the  swamp  would 


230  ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

conceal  him  till  night,  when  he  could  steal 
away  and  leave  the  country.  He  could  not 
swim,  but  he  could  cross  the  pond  high  up 
by  wading.  He  had  not  gone  three  hundred 
yards,  when,  as  he  crossed  a  rise,  he  heard 
his  dog's  well-known  yelp,  yelp,  and  looked 
back.  On  the  crest  of  a  hill  a  few  hundred 
yards  behind  him,  he  caught  sight  of  the  little 
beast.  He  was  coining  on  at  a  gallop,  straight 
behind,  his  nose  to  the  ground.  A  short  dis 
tance  behind  him  were  half-a-dozen  men,  Hall 
in  the  lead.  They  caught  sight  of  him  at 
the  same  instant,  and  a  fierce  shout  went  up 
from  them.  With  a  great  oath  the  fugitive 
rushed  on.  His  heart  was  thumping  against 
his  ribs,  and  his  face  burned  like  fire.  He 
reached  a  little  creek,  and,  springing  in,  ran 
down  it  through  the  water.  If  he  could  throw 
the  dog  from  the  scent,  he  might  escape.  The 
briars  tore  his  face,  and  the  thorns  stuck  into 
his  flesh ;  but  he  did  not  feel  them.  Life 
was  before,  death  was  behind  him.  He  clam 
bered  out,  and  rushed  on.  A  vine  caught 
him  and  threw  him  to  the  ground ;  a  sharp 
pain  shot  through  his  ankle ;  but  he  scram 
bled  up,  and  fled,  limping  on  through  the 
thickets.  The  water  came  in  sight  through 


ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER.  231 

the  bushes  at  the  foot  of  the  hill  he  was 
descending.  Perhaps  the  hound  had  been 
thrown  from  the  scent,  and  he  was  safe.  He 
wanted  but  ten  minutes.  He  breathed  freer, 
and  paused  to  listen.  Suddenly,  however,  his 
hopes  were  dashed  to  the  ground ;  for  close 
behind  him  he  heard  a  noise,  and,  turning, 
there  was  the  dog.  A  fearful  oath  escaped 
him.  But  hope  suddenly  rose  again.  He 
would  take  him  with  him.  He  could  drown 
him  in  the  pond.  He  turned  and  called  him 
in  a  low  voice, 

"Heah  —  heah!  Come  heah,  you  d — d 
fool!" 

The  dog  stopped  and  growled. 

He  took  a  few  steps  back  towards  him. 

"  Come  heah !     Don'  you  heah  me  ?  " 

The  little  beast,  with  the  timidity  of  his 
nature  intensified,  suddenly  turned,  and,  tuck 
ing  his  tail  between  his  legs,  retreated  some 
twenty  yards,  and,  half  turning  round,  gave 
a  loud  angry  bark.  A  shout  answered  back 
in  the  woods. 

With  an  oath  Pokeberry  raised  and  cocked 
his  gun,  and  brought  it  up  to  his  shoulder. 
The  little  wretch,  at  the  threatening  motion, 
started  to  flee.  There  was  a  loud  report. 


232  O.V  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

With  a  yelp  the  dog  rolled  over  in  the  bushes, 
stone-dead. 

The  living  brute  fled  on  again. 

In  a  few  moments  he  was  at  the  water's 
edge,  wading  through  the  alders  which  grew 
in  the  shallows.  They  were  deeper  than  he 
had  ever  seen  them.  He  emerged  from  the 
bushes.  Only  a  dozen  yards  away  was  the 
other  bank  covered  with  a  dense  and  almost 
impenetrable  thicket.  Once  there  he  was 
safe.  The  pursuers  were  already  almost  on 
him.  He  could  hear  their  voices.  Not  a 
moment  was  to  be  lost.  He  could  not  swim, 
but  the  water  before  him  was  smooth.  He 
dashed  in,  and  in  two  steps  went  down  over 
his  head. 

He  came  up  choking  and  struggling,  and 
struck  out  wildly,  only  to  go  down  again. 
Rising  again,  he  beat  the  water  frantically, 
and  again  went  under;  but  once  more  got 
to  the  top.  His  lungs  were  filled.  He  was 
going  down  again,  sinking,  drowning.  Good 
God !  drowning !  He  was  strangling.  Strug 
gling  to  the  top  again,  he  gave  a  wild  cry, 
"  Help,  help ! " 

The  water  filled  his  throat,  drawing  him 
down,  and  drowned  his  despairing  shriek. 


ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER.  233 

The  men  through  the  bushes  only  a  few 
yards  away  heard  the  cry,  wild,  agonized,  and 
rushed  into  the  alder  thickets,  through  the 
water.  Parting  the  bushes,  they  gazed  across 
to  the  other  bank.  It  lay  calm  and  quiet  in 
the  summer  sunshine.  They  looked  at  the 
water  just  before  them.  On  it,  a  little  way 
down,  just  in  the  current,  floated  an  old  worn 
hat.  That  was  all. 

The  waters  of  Newfound  slept  below  as 
placid  as  ever. 

It  was  late  the  following  afternoon. 
Bruce  had  been  sleeping.  He  had  never 
recovered  complete  consciousness ;  but  he 
was,  his  uncle  said,  "doing  well."  The 
major  and  the  doctor  were  sitting  together 
on  the  portico,  talking.  It  seemed  as  if  they 
could  not  be  separated  a  moment.  Mrs.  Lan- 
don  was  with  them.  Margaret  had  taken 
her  place,  and  was  with  Bruce,  sitting  beside 
his  bed  gently  fanning  him.  No  one  else 
was  in  the  room.  She  was  dressed  in  a  curi 
ous,  rich  old  flowered  silk  with  a  high  collar 
and  quaint  long  waist,  which  she  had  found 
in  one  of  the  old  trunks.  It  was  the  counter 
part  of  that  in  which  Mrs.  Colonel  Landon 


234  ON  NEWFOUND  EIVER. 

had  her  portrait  painted  as  a  bride.  She 
looked  in  it  as  if  she  had  stepped  out  of  the 
old  picture  over  the  piano  at  Landon  Hall. 
She  moved  from  the  bedside,  and  stood  look 
ing  out  of  the  window.  Her  profile  was 
clearly  defined.  It  was  as  fine  as  a  cameo. 
The  setting  sun  threw  its  golden  rays  upon 
her,  and  bathed  her  in  its  light.  Her  slender 
hands  were  clasped,  and  her  uplifted  pensive 
face  wore  a  sweet  gravity.  Bruce  suddenly 
opened  his  eyes.  His  gaze  fell  directly  on 
her.  He  looked  at  her  long  and  curiously, 
without  stirring. 

Presently  he  said  half  aloud  to  himself, 
"  That's  my  great-grandmother.'* 

Margaret  started,  then  stepped  softly  to 
his  side.  She  noted  his  improvement,  and 
smiled  as  she  leaned  over  him. 

"  Where  am  I  ?  "  asked  Bruce. 

"  At  home,"  she  said. 

"Ami?" 

He  glanced  around  the  room ;  memory 
seemed  trying  to  reassert  itself. 

"At  home?" 

"Yes.  Don't  talk."  Her  voice  was  soft 
and  soothing. 

"  Can't  I  talk?"  he  asked  like  a  child. 


O.V  NEWFOUND   RIVER.  235 

"  Not  just  now." 

"Why?" 

"  Well ;  because  I  tell  you  not :  you  belong 
to  me."  She  smiled. 

"  Do  I  ?     Am  I  my  grandfather,  then  ?  " 

She  leaned  over  and  kissed  him  softly. 

"No,  my  darling,  you  are  your  own  self, 
Bruce.  But  you  must  not  talk  now." 

"  One  word.  Do  you  belong  to  me  ?  "  he 
asked. 

"Yes;  entirely,  with  all  my  heart." 

"  All  right ;  kiss  me  ;  I'll  go  to  sleep." 

A  few  weeks  later  there  was  a  small  party 
assembled,  one  afternoon,  on  the  portico  of  the 
old  Landon  place,  Landon  Hill.  A  remark 
able  transformation  had  taken  place  in  the 
time  which  had  elapsed,  and  as  two  of  the  men 
who  were  in  the  party  on  the  porch  had  ridden 
up,  they  had  been  discussing  it  in  wondering 
undertones.  The  old  fields  which  but  a  few 
weeks  since  had  been  thick  with  pines  were 
being  cleared  up ;  roads  were  being  made ; 
fences  built;  and  whichever  way  the  eye 
turned,  bodies  of  negroes  were  at  work  cut 
ting,  clearing,  and  hauling.  Loud  laughter 
and  shouts  in  musical  chorus  came  across  the 


236  ON  NEU'FOUXD  BIVER. 

fields  from  the  white-shirted  workmen,  arid 
volumes  of  white  and  blue  smoke  rose  from 
the  piles  where  the  brush  was  being  burned, 
and,  floating  away  over  the  fields,  gave  the 
landscape  the  hazy,  mellow  look  of  Indian 
summer. 

"  Well,  this  do  beat  everything,"  one  of 
the  men,  the  smaller  of  the  two,  said  to  his 
companion. 

The  speaker  was  Jim  Hall,  just  elected 
sheriff,  and  the  other  was  Sam  Mills,  who, 
owing  to  the  paralysis  of  Squire  Johnson  a 
day  or  two  after  the  pursuit  of  Pokeberry, 
had  unexpectedly  found  himself  elected  to  the 
honorable  position  of  justice  of  the  peace. 

tk  The  major's  a  team,"  said  Mills,  slowly, 
as  he  took  a  survey  of  the  scene  around  them. 
"  He  must  have  half  the  Landon  Hall  niggers 
over  here  clearin'  up." 

"  He's  a  team  at  gittin'  folks  elected.  If 't 
hadn'  been  for  him,  you  an'  I  wouldn'  a 
beat  them  lower  een  fellows  so  easy,"  said 
Hall. 

"  I'm  glad  the  major  got  the  old  place 
back,"  Mills  said  slowly,  his  mind  working 
quietly  in  the  old  direction.  "He  wouldn' 
take  a  heap  for  it." 


ON  NEWFOUND  EIVER.  237 

"Why,  I  heard  the  old  doctor  was  goin' 
to  stay  here,  and  that  Bruce  was  goin'  to 
stay  with  him,  now  he's  married,"  said  Hall, 
in  surprise. 

Mills  explained: 

"So  he  is.  But  that's  the  same  thing. 
The  major  offered  him  the  other  place  if  he 
wanted  it.  He'd  give  him  anything  in  the 
world.  Bruce  havin'  it  is  the  same  as  havin' 
it  himself." 

"  He  certainly  am'  stingy,"  admitted  Hall, 
as  they  rode  into  the  yard.  "  The  way  he 
looks  after  the  old  squa'r  shows  that,  if 
nothin'  else  does.  You  know  he  went  up 
thar  and  told  him  he'd  keep  him  comfort'ble 
long  as  he  lived  ?  " 

They  had  ridden  into  the  yard  and  tied 
their  horses. 

There,  too,  they  found  the  work  of  clearing 
up  performed:  the  hedges  trimmed,  the  yard 
cleaned,  everything  tidy.  Bruce,  who  was 
lounging  on  the  porch  in  an  easy-chair,  be 
side  which  sat  a  young  lady,  her  hand  on  his 
arm,  came  forward  to  meet  them.  His  com 
panion  rose  and  entered  the  house.  He  was 
still  pale,  and  the  bandage  was  not  yet  re 
moved  from  his  head.  He  greeted  them  cor- 


238  ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

dially,  and  invited  them  into  the  house.  The 
major  met  them  on  the  portico.  He  was  fol 
lowed  by  the  young  lady,  dressed  in  a  soft 
white  robe,  and  with  an  expectant  smile  in 
her  soft  brown  eyes,  and  whom  he  spoke  of 
with  evident  pride  as,  uMy  daughter,"  and 
to  whom  he,  in  turn,  presented  each  of  the 
visitors  as,  "  My  friend,  Mr.  Sam  Mills,"  and 
"  My  friend,  Mr.  James  Hall." 

Margaret  shook  hands  with  them  with  a 
manner  and  a  smile  which  at  once  gave  her  a 
personal  place  in  their  friendship.  In  a  little 
while  there  was  a  step,  and  the  old  doctor 
came  slowly  out  accompanied  by  Mrs.  Lan- 
don.  He  looked  old  enough  to  be  the  major's 
father. 

"  Brother,  these  are  our  two  neighbors,  Mr. 
Mills  and  Mr.  Hall,  of  whom  I  have  spoken 
to  you,"  said  the  major.  His  voice  appeared 
to  the  two  men  to  have  a  new  softness  in  it ; 
a  tone  of  fresh  tenderness. 

Margaret  slipped  away,  and  presently  re 
turned,  followed  by  two  servants,  each  bear 
ing  a  large  silver  waiter,  one  with  tea-things 
on  it,  and  the  other  with  fruit.  One  was  the 
old  mammy,  tall,  spare,  dignified;  the  other 
was  Dick  Runaway. 


ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER.  239 

"  This  is  an  old  friend  of  yours,  I  believe  ?  " 
she  said,  addressing  Loth  of  the  two  men,  as 
Dick  placed  the  tray  011  a  little  table  before 
her. 

Dick's  face  shone  at  the  reference  to  him 
from  his  mistress,  and  a  double  row  of  very 
white  teeth  were  suddenly  displayed. 

After  a  little  the  two  visitors  stated  their 
business.  They  wanted  the  major  to  run 
for  governor,  and  Bruce  for  Congress.  New 
found  would  stand  by  them.  Squire  Johnson 
had  sent  them  word  he'd  live  on  purpose  to 
vote  for  them. 

The  major  thanked  them,  but  was  humor 
ously  inexorable  in  his  refusal.  He  said  he 
had  never  aspired  higher  than  to  be  a  jus 
tice  or  a  constable ;  he  had  aspired  that  high ; 
but  there  had  always  been  better  men  found 
to  fill  those  positions.  Bruce  might  suit  bet 
ter.  Bruce's  pretty  wife  looked  proudly  at 
him,  and  rested  a  slender  white  hand  on  his 
shoulder. 

As  the  two  men  an  hour  later  rode  away 
through  the  evening  light,  the  sky  above  was 
a  pale,  soft  blue. 

The  sun  was  just  disappearing  in  a  haze 
over  the  western  woods  that  crowned  the  hori- 


240  ON  NEWFOUND  RIVER. 

zon  beyond  the  wide  bottom,  through  which, 
a  mile  ahead,  crept  Newfound. 

The  fields  were  quiet  now;  but  the  rich 
voices  of  laughing  negroes  floated  up  from  the 
paths  by  which  they  wended  their  way  home  ; 
the  mellowed  clangle  of  cow-bells  sounded 
in  the  distance,  accompanied  by  the  lowing 
of  the  cows  as  they  came  slowly  up  to  their 
calves  from  the  pasture  by  the  pond ;  and  a 
single  partridge,  on  a  stump  a  hundred  yards 
away  in  the  field,  piped  his  three  notes  to 
his  vagrant  mate. 

The  two  men,  touched  perhaps  by  the  peace 
ful  scene,  rode  for  a  little  distance  without 
speaking. 

Hall  first  broke  the  silence. 

"  Sam,"  he  said,  in  a  low,  mysterious  tone, 
"s'pose  we  run  him  for  governor,  anyways. 
We  can  git  him  elected.  He'll  git  every  vote 
on  Newfound." 

"  I'm  for  him  for  president,"  said  Mills. 


Typography  by  J.  S.  Gushing  &  Co.,  Boston. 
Presswork  by  Berwick  &  Smith,  Boston. 


P133 
on 


On  Newfound  river 


M11974 


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